Staff are asked to consider whether their research project requires ethical approval *before* submitting an application for funding. There are three levels of ethical approval, Level 1 being self audit. In all cases, investigators should undertake Level 1 self-assessment. Where the checklist confirms potential risk, level 2 procedures will be followed and approval given either by the School Ethics Officer, or in certain cases will be referred to the Ethics and Governance Committee (the REC is formally a sub-committee of the School Research Committee, to which it reports). In the rare event that the project is deemed to raise issues that require level three approval, this approval must be sought, via the School Ethics Officer, from the College Ethics Committee. It is the researcher’s responsibility to show awareness of ethical issues, to be aware of appropriate guidance, and to follow proper procedures. Please consult the Policy on Research Ethics before filling out the Research Ethics Self-Audit Level 1.

• The School of Law's Policy on Research Ethics
• Research Ethics Self-Audit - Level 1
• Research Ethics Checklist  - Level 2

Please submit the Research Ethics Self-Audit Level 1 checklist to the Research and Knowledge Exchange Office at the initial proposal stage to allow us sufficient time to follow the correct procedure.

For information on the College of Humanities and Social Sciences Research Ethics Framework, please read the following document -

Any queries and enquiries regarding research ethics at the School of Law should be directed to the Research Ethics Officer, Richard Sparks, at Richard.Sparks@ed.ac.uk


Student Survey Ethics Committee

The University has a Student Survey Ethics Committee (SSEC) that is remitted to assess requests for access to the University’s student body from external organisations, individuals and internal members of the University wishing to undertake a University-wide or College survey.

For surveys to be conducted within a School permission is required from the Head of School and the SSEC is not involved.
To avoid over-loading the student body no student, regardless of their home institution, will be granted permission to conduct University-wide survey's or survey's which extend beyond one School for the purposes of dissertation or assignment research.
All staff are asked to remember these approval mechanisms when approached by external organisations or colleagues with a survey request.

For further information about the Student Survey Ethics Committee, please refer to the website -

http://www.acaffairs.ed.ac.uk/Committees/StudentSurveyEthics/index.htm