CITI Human Subjects Protection Training

Who Must Complete CITI Human Subjects Protection Training?

All Key Study Personnel at UCSF or its affiliated institutions must complete human subjects protection training on the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) website. The requirement to complete CITI training applies to all Human Subjects Research, Key Study Personnel, including: Exempt, Expedited and Full Board studies. IRB approval of any individual application is contingent upon the fulfillment of this requirement.

UCSF Key Study Personnel (KSP) 

Key Study Personnel (KSP) include the Principal Investigator, other investigators and research personnel who are directly involved in conducting research with study participants or who are directly involved in using study participants’ identifiable private information during the course of the research.

Key Personnel also include faculty mentors/advisors who provide direct oversight to Postdoctoral Fellows, Residents and Clinical Fellows serving as PI on the IRB application.

Completion Lists

Human Subjects Protection (HSP) - required

Good Clinical Practice (GCP) 

 

CITI human subjects protection training is only mandatory for KSP. However, we recommend that anyone involved with human subjects complete CITI training or similar human subjects protection training. IRB members, HRPP staff and Institutional Officials also must complete CITI training. 

It is the Principal Investigator’s responsibility to ensure that the list of personnel in the IRB application is current and those listed as Key Study Personnel maintain current CITI Human Subjects Protection Training.

Training is valid for a three-year period. Investigators and staff must renew their training certification before it expires by taking either a refresher course or retaking the full course. Members of the research team who have not completed human subject research protection training may not take part in aspects of the research that involve human subjects or their private identifiable data.

Note: If you are a SFVAHCS researcher, please review VA training requirements. 

How to Register on CITI

Register and select 'University of California, San Francisco' as your affiliate organization. No learner fee is required so long as you affiliate with UCSF during registration—even if using a non‑UCSF email address.

For users with MyAccess access

To access the CITI site:

  1. Navigate to the "Log in through my organization" tab on the the CITI site.
  2. Enter "University of California, San Francisco" as your organization affiliation. 
  3. You will be prompted to log in using your MyAccess credentials.

Alternatively, you can log into MyAccess, then search for and select "Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI Program)". Follow the prompts that appear.

For users without MyAccess access: Please refer to the CITI step-by-step instructions for registration details. 
Select your courses

You will be given curriculum options.  Some are required, some optional.  

Review the "How do I begin my course?" module for assistance in beginning your courses.

Required

  • Human Subjects Protection (HSP)
  • Good Clinical Practice (GCP)*

Optional

  • Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR)**
  • Social and Behavioral Responsible Conduct of Research***
  • Big Data and Data Science Research Ethics***
  • Essentials of Responsible AI**
  • Revised Common Rule
  • Technology, Ethics, and Regulations

*Individuals engaged in the conduct of a NIH-funded clinical trial (per the NIH definition) must complete a Good Clinical Practice (GCP) training. The study’s Principal Investigator is responsible for identifying the staff that should take the training. Recipients of GCP training are expected to retain documentation of their training which should be refreshed at least every three years in order to stay up to date with regulations, standards, and guidelines. UCSF IRB does not review nor track GCP trainings and they are not accepted as a substitute for the Human Subjects Protection Course.

**Some federal awards require that grantees undergo education in the Responsible Conduct of Research.

***These courses are provided by the CTSI Bioethics & Regulatory Engagement.

FAQs: Completing the UCSF CITI Human Subjects Protection Training Course

How many modules are required?
  • You will be required to take 4 core modules and 2 modules of your choosing. You can take additional optional modules on other topics, if you wish. 
How long does the Human Subjects Protection training take? Can I stop and start again?

Most users complete all of their required modules in 2-4 hours. You can stop and begin anytime. Save your work before you exit, and remember your user name and password.

How do I obtain a certificate of completion?

After you finish the course, CITI will issue a completion report. Keep a copy for your records and give a copy to members of your administrative team who need it for their records. 

Refresher Course 

The UCSF CITI Human Subjects Protection Training course is valid for 3 years. You can renew your training easily by taking any 3 modules of your choosing. It is your responsibility to keep track of training expiration date(s). Refresher courses are available up to 3 months after your training expiration date. If you do not complete the refresher course during that time period, you will be required to take the full course again. 

SFVAHCS CITI training and the optional UCSF GCP training also are valid for 3 years.

Completing a Refresher Course

Login and select refresher course form the UCSF course selection

After you log into CITI, the Human Subjects Protection Training refresher course (e.g. Stage 2, 3 or 4) will appear in the UCSF courses section. Click on the title of the course to begin.  Note: Once you have taken all the refresher courses offered by CITI (up to Stage 4), you will be required to take the full course again. Important note: The refresher course will only be available 90 days prior to your expiration date.

Complete three modules of your choosing

You will be asked to select and complete any 3 modules of your choosing. Doing so will renew your CITI human subjects protection training requirement for another 3 years. Note: GCP or SFVAHCS refresher courses may have different requirements.

CITI Training From Other Sites

What are the CITI requirements for SFVAHCS investigators and staff?

The SFVAHCS requires regular training for all individuals engaged in research with human subjects, their tissue or data. If you are working at the SFVAHCS, we recommend completion of the VA CITI training, which will meet UCSF’s requirements.

There are other education requirements for the SFVAHCS, so ensure you and all members of your research team are current with those requirements. Contact the VA directly with questions.

What do I need to do if I already completed CITI training at another institution?

You must transfer your CITI training records in order for any prior coursework to be considered at UCSF. Training completed at another institution does not automatically fulfill UCSF’s requirements, since each institution selects its own required modules.

To transfer your records:

  • Log into the CITI website with your existing credentials
  • On the Welcome page, click “Add Affiliation” and select “University of California, San Francisco.”
  • Follow the steps to affiliate with UCSF.
  • Once affiliated with both institutions, CITI will compare your completed modules with UCSF’s required modules.

Important notes:

  • Only equivalent modules will transfer; UCSF-specific modules must still be completed.
  • To receive transfer credit, you must enroll in the same stage of the course (e.g., Human Subjects Research – Biomedical Basic or Refresher).

For step-by-step instructions, see CITI’s guidance on transferring courses.

Note: If you would like to receive credit for modules previously taken, the following requirements must be met:

  • To transfer course credit between institutions, you will need to be affiliated with both institutions (your previous institution and your new institution).
  • When you are affiliated with both institutions, enroll in the courses that need to be transferred  You will need to enroll in the same stage of the course (Basic / Refresher) for a transfer to occur.
Do collaborators at other sites need to complete the UCSF CITI Human Subjects Protection Training course?

Collaborators only need to complete this training if UCSF has agreed to act as their IRB of record. If outside collaborators have received their own IRB approval, they do not need to take the UCSF training and should defer to their own IRB's educational requirements.

CITI Certificates and Completion Reports

For Current UCSF Personnel:
If you are still affiliated with UCSF, you must retrieve your own certificates and completion reports by logging into your CITI account. The UCSF IRB staff do not have access to your password/login information. Please follow the instructions provided on the CITI website to access and download your records. 

For Former UCSF Personnel:
If you are requesting a certificate or completion report for someone no longer affiliated with UCSF, please complete the Request for CITI Certificates and Completion Reports for Former UCSF Personnel form. 

Questions?

The CITI Support Center offers an array of resources and solutions to address commonly raised inquiries. Assistance can be obtained by completing a support request form or by reaching out to them via phone at 888-529-5929.

Forgot Username or Password?

To retrieve your CITI Program username and/or password click on the Forgot link, also located on the CITI Program log in page , and enter the email address associated with your CITI Program account to retrieve your username. The UCSF IRB staff do not have access to your password/login information. 

I have more than one account. Can I merge them into one CITI Program account?

To ensure accurate training records, it is recommended that individuals only maintain one CITI Program account per institution. Having multiple accounts under the same institution can lead to duplicated coursework completions.

While we are unable to delete accounts, CITI can merge multiple existing accounts upon request. To merge CITI Program accounts, please email [email protected] and provide:

  • Your full name
  • Your institutional affiliation
  • The username for the account you want to keep
  • The username(s) of the account(s) you want merged

Consolidating accounts will allow your training history to be stored in one place for simpler record keeping and to prevent accidental retakes of completed courses. Please contact CITI at [email protected] or 888-529-5929 if you need assistance merging accounts or have any other questions.

 

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