Institutional Review Board (IRB)

Ethical oversight of research at GCAS College Dublin

The GCAS Institutional Review Board exists to safeguard the rights, dignity, and welfare of human participants in research conducted under the auspices of GCAS. All research involving human subjects — including interviews, surveys, ethnographic fieldwork, clinical case studies, and any other engagement with living persons as sources of data — must be reviewed and approved by the IRB before data collection begins.

This requirement applies to all GCAS researchers: PhD and MA candidates, faculty, visiting researchers, and any external scholars conducting research that names GCAS as their institutional affiliation.

What the IRB reviews

The IRB evaluates proposed research against international standards for ethical conduct, drawing on the Belmont Report’s principles of respect for persons, beneficence, and justice, and on the Declaration of Helsinki where applicable. Reviewers examine the methodology, the procedures for informed consent, the management of confidentiality and data protection (including GDPR compliance), the handling of vulnerable populations, and the broader ethical implications of the research design.

The IRB does not exist to obstruct research; it exists to make research more rigorous, more humane, and more defensible — both ethically and legally — once it enters the world.

Two review tracks

Standard review is required for research involving any of the following: vulnerable populations (minors, prisoners, persons in dependent relationships with the researcher, persons in clinical or psychiatric care), sensitive personal data, deception, more-than-minimal risk to participants, or any methodology where the potential for harm — psychological, social, professional, or otherwise — exceeds what a person would ordinarily encounter in daily life.

Exempt review is available for research that is genuinely minimal-risk: anonymous surveys with no sensitive content, observation in fully public settings, analysis of publicly available data, and similarly low-stakes inquiries. An exempt determination is made by the IRB, not by the researcher; you must still submit an application, but the review process is faster and lighter.

If you are unsure which track applies to your research, submit the standard application. The IRB will redirect you to the exempt track if appropriate.

Application fee

A €250 application fee supports the work of the review board, including reviewer honoraria, administrative coordination, and the institutional infrastructure required to maintain GCAS’s standing as a credentialed reviewing body. The fee is paid at the point of submission and is non-refundable regardless of the review outcome.

Hardship reductions are available on a case-by-case basis; please contact the IRB Coordinator before submitting if you require one.

How to apply

To begin an application, please request access to the IRB application form by emailing [email protected] with your name, programme of study, supervisor (if applicable), and a one-paragraph description of your proposed research. The IRB Coordinator will respond within three working days with the password-protected application link.

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. Standard reviews are typically completed within four to six weeks of submission; exempt reviews are typically completed within two weeks.

After approval

Approved researchers receive a formal approval letter from the IRB, valid for the duration of the research project (typically twelve months, renewable). Significant changes to the approved methodology require an amendment submission. Adverse events, unanticipated harms, or breaches of confidentiality must be reported to the IRB within seven days of discovery.

The IRB also requires a brief end-of-study report at the conclusion of the project, summarizing how the research was conducted and noting any deviations from the approved protocol.

Póngase en contacto con

Questions about IRB review, the application process, or research ethics more broadly may be directed to the IRB Coordinator at [email protected].