This online course is taught over 2 consecutive days. All sessions are live and are a mix of lectures, interactive practical sessions and Q&A sessions.

By the end of the course you will have acquired:

1. an understanding of all aspects research governance and knowledge of the processes involved;
2. knowledge of your research governance responsibilities;
3. the skills to think through the ethical issues that might arise in your research; and
4. the knowledge and skills to provide research participants with the information that they need to make an informed decision about consent to participate in your research study.

This is an introductory course aimed at those who are new to health research, and is not designed for those already experienced in this field who may have specific, complex queries.

This course will cover:

1. What do we mean by research governance?
2. Who is responsible for research governance?
3. When in the research process should you start thinking about it?
4. Where can you get help and advice?

This course is taught by Dr Lucy Culliford, Dr Sarah Baos and Dr Jo Worthinhton.

Before booking this course, please make sure you read the information provided above about the target audience. It is important that you have access to the relevant IT resources needed for the course to ensure you can get the most from the course.

Bookings are taken via our online booking system, for which you must register an account. To check if you are eligible for free or discounted courses please see our fees and voucher packs page. All bookings are subject to our terms & conditions, which can be read in full here.

For help and support with booking a course refer to our booking information page, FAQs or feel free to contact us directly. For available payment options please see: How to pay your short course fees.

Participants are granted access to our virtual learning platform (Blackboard) 1 to 2 weeks in advance of the course. This allows time for any pre-course work to be completed and to familiarise with the platform.

To gain the most from the course, we recommend that you attend in full and participate in all interactive components. We endeavour to record all live lecture sessions and upload these to the online learning environment within 24 hours. This allows course participants to review these sessions at leisure and revisit them multiple times. Please note that we do not record breakout sessions.

All course participants retain access to the online learning materials and recordings for 3 months after the course. 

University of Bristol staff and postgraduate students who do not wish to attend the full course may instead register for access to the 'Materials & Recordings' version of this course: Further information and bookings.

100% of attendees recommend this course*.
*Attendee feedback from 2025.

Here is a sample of feedback from the last run of the course:

"I liked the use of mentimeter during the sessions as it was easier to participate.” - Course feedback, March 2025.

"The virtual aspect worked very well. For me, being a clinician full time, having the recordings and the ability to access them is invaluable and well worth it.” - Course feedback, March 2025.

"Although the breath of the course was very broad and the duration was short, it still managed to be detailed and informative. The speakers were very experienced and knowledgeable, and were able to answer all our questions in a very helpful manner. The course resources were very thought provoking and it showed that a lot of consideration and planning had gone into making sure the practical exercises would encourage lots of discussion. I particularly enjoyed the Menti sessions as it allowed us to interact, look at case studies in detail whilst hearing the feedback from the course instructors.” - Course feedback, March 2025.

"I really enjoyed the course. It was detailed and covered a vast amount over the two days. The speakers were knowledgeable and able to answer questions in detail. I enjoyed the mix of speakers over the two days and enjoyed Lucy's relaxed chairing over the two days.” - Course feedback, March 2025.

"I particularly enjoyed the interactive sessions using menti. I thought this worked really well and avoided the potential silence/awkwardness of breakout rooms. I thought they worked really well and would encourage more embedding of sessions like those within the course.” - Course feedback, March 2025.

"Lots of different speakers with various expertise in different areas.” - Course feedback, March 2025.

"Learning about CTIMPS and equipoise was really interesting.” - Course feedback, March 2025.

"Brief and focused presentations, lots of opportunities for questions.” - Course feedback, March 2025.

"Comprehensive intro to the topics.” - Course feedback, March 2025.