Faculty and staff whose work includes the conduct and administration of research projects may benefit from an experience with RATS-the Research Administration Training Series of educational courses.
The classes are designed to help the participants become knowledgeable about the responsible conduct of research, Tony Onofrietti, education specialist, said.
“(The classes) help you be better at your job and help you support the academic mission of the university,” Onofrietti said.
The program offers more than 25 instructional classes to members of the U’s research community. If employees take certain sequences of courses, they can earn up to three certificates of achievement from the program.
Each class consists of just one two-hour session, so interested participants can learn about many different subjects over the semester by signing up for various courses.
“Having more informed administrators and staff is what we’re going for,” said John Stillman, director of the Institutional Review Board at the U.
“I think (the RATS classes) have been extremely beneficial because they give you insight into certain information that’s not readily available to you every day in the workplace,” said Narneice Craven, a clinical research coordinator with the college of pharmacy who completed nine RATS classes.
“I feel like the people who have been to the classes have walked away with a better understanding,” said Kristie Thompson, who teaches RATS classes on budget preparation and project management. “I’ve seen some department administrators just soar with this program.”
Employees who are involved with research are not required to take Research Administration Training courses. All are given some mandatory training on the job. However, 899 U employees opted to gain supplementary training by taking RATS courses last semester, according to the program’s statistics.
Onofrietti said the courses are appealing because they benefit staff in terms of professional development and networking.
The three certificates that can be earned are the Pre-Award certificate, for learning how to find and successfully attain grants and other project funding; the Post-Award certificate, for learning how to allocate a project’s budget; and resources and the Clinical Research certificate, for learning how to properly conduct human subject research.
All courses will take place between Jan. 31 and May 9. Although it is free for U employees to register for and attend a RATS course, no-shows may be charged a $25 cancellation fee if they do not give the program advance notice that they will not attend.
Employees can register for the Research Administration Training Series at www.education.research.utah.edu.
For more information about Research Administration Training, contact Tony Onofrietti at 585-3492 or [email protected].