Any survey that meets one of the following conditions should undergo the survey review process:
- Surveys that request a random sample of students, faculty, or staff.
- Surveys that will generalize to the broader IU population of students, faculty, or staff.
- Surveys that target specific subpopulations such as enrollment status, gender, ethnicity, etc.
- Surveys used for institutional measures and improvement.
Student or faculty research projects will only be reviewed for approval if they are sponsored by a high-level (e.g., Vice Provost) administrator. The sponsor will ensure that the project aligns with campus needs, and that researcher shares survey results. Small scale or focused intent surveys, such as academic faculty research surveys, assigned course work, participants' event evaluations, or point-of-service surveys targeting specific users that do not meet one of the above conditions are not subject to this review process.
Surveys are reviewed three times a year.
For fall administration: July 1
For spring administration: November 1
For summer administration: March 1
Each IU campus has a specific approval process, most use a campus committee to evaluate and prioritize the survey requests. Decisions are made within a month of the submission deadline. Requestor may be contacted if the committee has concerns about sampling, the wording of items, timing of administration, etc.
When approved, the survey will be added to the University Survey Calendar, a sample population (if needed) will be arranged by OIA, and the administration/email dates will be provided. Contact (email) dates will be coordinated so that participants do not receive more than one request per day and are not asked to complete more than two surveys per semester, when possible.
It is the responsibility of the researcher to ensure all compliance and approvals are in order before administering the survey.
- Researchers are required to sign the UITS Use agreement. Acceptable Use Agreement - Access (iu.edu)
- Researchers must take the FERPA tutorialbefore accessing student information. FERPA tutorial: Employee Responsibilities: Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA): Indiana University (iu.edu)
- All requirements for IRB involving human subjects must be obtained by the researcher. For more information about IRB approval, visit the Office of Research Compliance.
After collection and analysis, all submitters are encouraged to provide a summary of how results were used for campus improvement or provide articles, reports, etc. that show that the data were used in some fashion. The data and results will be shared on the approved Campus Survey page.