Alberta Research Information Services (ARISE) System

Research Ethics Application

All research ethics applications at the University of Alberta are prepared and submitted electronically using the Alberta Research Information Services (ARISE) system.

Access ARISE

Support for the system and your ethics application is available below.

Getting started in ARISE

To use the system, you will require a valid University CCID and password, which you will use to log in. All current University Faculty, staff and students are given a CCID (same as for your ualberta email). Detailed instructions are provided below.

University Faculty, Staff + Students

Animal Use Applicants

Evidence of Basic Animal Care and Use Course (IAUTP Part 1) training is required to use the online system.

If you have NOT taken  Basic Animal Care and Use Course, you will need to complete and submit a registration request form for Part 1 Animal Training. Instructions will be emailed to you once your request for  basic training registration is received.

If you have completed your  basic animal care and use training elsewhere, you will need to forward your certificates, course syllabus, etc. to the Research Ethics Office by email (reoffice@ualberta.ca). The University Veterinarian will assess the external training and someone will be in touch with you as to what to do next.

All Animal Use Applicants: Detailed Instructions for accessing ARISE

Human Research Applicants

Faculty members - you will automatically be given the Human Research - Principal Investigator and Supervisor role within the system but you will need to update your Profile.

University staff - you will automatically be given a study coordinator/research assistant role in the system, but you will need to update your Profile.

If you are not University staff, but will be working with a PI who is University Faculty, request a Guest CCID from the home Department of your PI. Guest CCID expires annually and must be renewed via the home Department of your PI. It may take 1-2 business days after you change the temporary password assigned to your CCID before you can log in to the online system (this process is not under the control of REO or the online system). If you are not able to log in to the online system after 7 business days, please contact us.

Human Research Applicants: Detailed instructions for accessing ARISE

Student Researchers

University of Alberta students can be named as the Principal Investigator on applications to REB 1 or REB 2. However, students (including medical residents, post-doctoral fellows or any post-graduate students) cannot be named as the Principal Investigator on applications to REB 3 or REB 4.

How to Apply

All University students will have a CCID, which you will use to log in to the online system.

Follow these steps to access the system

St. Stephen's College (Human Research Applicants)

In 2019, St. Stephen's College formally designated review of all human participant research conducted by its staff and students to the Research Ethics Boards administered by the University of Alberta.

Follow these steps to access the system


Note: If you are not University staff, but will be working with a PI who is University Faculty, request a Guest CCID from the home Department of your PI. See the Human Research Applicants section above.

External Applicants

External applicants will require a Guest CCID to access ARISE. Please complete this CCID Request Form, and you will be sent a temporary password (usually within 24 hours). Once you change your temporary password, it may take up to 2 business days for the CCID system to sync with ARISE. If you are not able to log into ARISE after this time, please contact reoffice@ualberta.ca.

AHS and Covenant Health

In 1997, Capital Health, Caritas Health (now Covenant Health) and the University of Alberta collapsed all their hospital and health sciences REBs and through a formal agreement established the Health Research Ethics Board (HREB). AHS continued that agreement when the health regions were merged in 2008. Since its establishment, HREB has been the conjoint ethics review board for all University of Alberta health researchers (faculty and trainees) as well as researchers from, or studies involving the resources of, Alberta Health Services and Covenant Health.

HREB is administered by the University of Alberta but it is comprised of researchers from all three institutions. The US Federal-wide Assurances (FWAs) maintained by the University, Alberta Health Services and Covenant Health all name HREB, which is in turn registered with the US Office of Human Research Protections. HREB acts concurrently and simultaneously for all three institutions.

As of 2017, AHS and Covenant Health have designated HREB as their review board for all human research, excluding cancer-related studies, conducted under their auspices by researchers not affiliated with either University of Alberta or the University of Calgary. By formal agreement, AHS, Covenant Health, the University of Calgary and the University of Alberta have delegated review of all cancer-related studies to the Cancer Committee of the Health Research Ethics Board of Alberta, administered by Alberta Innovates.

How to Apply

Researchers from Alberta Health Services and Covenant Health (without a University of Alberta affiliation) will need to request a Guest CCID from the Research Ethics Office (see External Applicants above). 

After obtaining your Guest CCID, follow these steps to access the system:

AHS Applicants   Covenant Health Applicants

Athabasca University

In 2018, Athabasca University formally designated the Health Research Ethics Board (REB 3 and REB 4) as the board of review for all human health research involving Athabasca University researchers, facilities or resources.

How to Apply

Applicants will need to request a Guest CCID from the Research Ethics Office (more information above). 

After obtaining your Guest CCID, follow these steps to access the system.

Concordia University of Edmonton

In July 2023, Concordia University of Edmonton (CUE) has partnered with the University of Alberta Research Ethics Office for its human research ethics review and approval processes. 

How to Apply

Applicants will need to request a Guest CCID from the Research Ethics Office (more information above). 

After obtaining your Guest CCID, follow these steps to access the system.

MacEwan University

In 2017, MacEwan University formally designated the Health Research Ethics Board (REB 3 or REB 4) as the board of review for all health research involving MacEwan University researchers, facilities or resources.

How to Apply

Applicants will need to request a Guest CCID from the Research Ethics Office (more information above). 

After obtaining your Guest CCID, follow these steps to access the system.

NorQuest College

Effective September 2020, REB 3 (HREB - Health Panel) is the designated Research Ethics Board (REB) to review applications from researchers at NorQuest College. Regardless of whether the methodology in your study appears to fit the criteria listed on the University’s website, by applying to this REB the study will flow through the required Department approval process.

How to Apply

Applicants will need to request a Guest CCID from the Research Ethics Office (more information above).

After obtaining your Guest CCID, follow these steps to access the system.

Royal Roads University

REB 3 (HREB - Health Panel) is the Research Ethics Board (REB) designated to review applications from researchers enrolled at Royal Roads University who plan to conduct research involving patients, staff (and/or their data) or resources of the University of Alberta, Alberta Health Services or Covenant Health as part of the research.

Notes:
  1. Ethics approval from Royal Roads should be obtained BEFORE submitting to REB 3;
  2. The following documents should be included in your application submission:
    • Royal Roads ethics application;
    • Royal Roads REB Approval Letter;
    • Approved consent documents (if applicable);
    • Any other documentation that formed part of the Royal Roads ethics application.
How to Apply

Royal Roads University applicants need to request a Guest CCID from the Research Ethics Office (more information above).

After obtaining your Guest CCID, follow these steps to access the system.

University of Lethbridge
How to Apply

Applicants will need to request a Guest CCID from the Research Ethics Office (more information above).

After obtaining your Guest CCID, follow these steps to access the online system.

Other External Researchers

External researchers not affiliated with any of the institutions listed above (e.g. visiting researchers, etc.) will need to request a Guest CCID from the Research Ethics Office (more information above). Applicants will also need to upload a current CV/resume into the Documents section of their ethics application.

After obtaining your Guest CCID, follow these steps to access the system.

Note: If you will be working with a PI who is University Faculty, request a Guest CCID from the home Department of your PI. See the Human Research Applicants section above.

Release of Funds

Not ready to submit an ethics application? The release of funds process enables researchers to access the funds budgeted for up to one year of the project, pending approval of a fully developed ethics application.

Learn more about the Release of Funds process

ARISE help + video tutorials

Video tutorials or help documents for using the ARISE system are available below, some are separated for animal use applicants and human research applicants. Each video, when viewed on Youtube.com, includes a description and special chapters you can skip to. Click on the titles below or click the "YouTube" logo within each video to watch on youtube.com.

Notes:
  • The system was formerly called "REMO" and the resources below may still show this old name.
  • The ARISE smartforms (main application, renewal, amendment forms, etc.) had an upgrade on Jan 15, 2022. The videos marked as being updated in January 2022 have been updated to show the new smartforms.

How to start a new human participant research application (video)

New upgraded application form and how to navigate around it. Updated January 2022.

Skip to:

How to start a new animal use protocol (video)

How a Research Investigator starts an animal use application. Updated January 2022.

Skip to:

Note: You must have completed Part 1: Ethics of Animal Use before you can access the application.


How to respond to Reviewer Notes (video)

How to access and respond to Reviewer Notes in the online system. Updated January 2022.

Skip to: 02:51 - See Errors

See also: Reviewer Notes after the ARISE upgrade - strange-looking characters (Google Doc)


Navigating the online system (video)

An overview of ARISE and finding your studies


Update 'My Profile' (video)

How to update your department in ARISE.

Student PIs: See specific instructions for your profile settings (Google Doc).


Request additional role (video)

How to request an additional role for your ARISE profile (investigator, study coordinator, supervisor, animal research applicant)


Copy an existing study or create a template (PDF)

How to copy an existing application to use as the starting point for a new application


Documentation (video)

How to add, edit, delete and rename documents in an application. For the new system (since January 2022), see this video for human participants, and this video for animal use.


Department and Supervisor Approval

Department Approval

For Department Approvers: How to grant department approval (HREB applications only)

Supervisor Review

For Faculty Supervisors: How to review your students' application prior to submission (REB 1 and 2 applications only)


After Approval

Approval letters (video)

How to find and save your Approval Letters [PDF version]


Change Personnel

How to add or delete personnel on an approved application.

Change Funding

How to add or delete a funding source on an approved application

Amendments (video)

How to create and submit an amendment or change to your study. Updated January 2022.

Skip to:

This video is specific to ACUC. However, amendment submissions to REB follow the same process outlined.


Renewals

How to create and submit a renewal:
Submission tips:

More Help

Animal use application

Human research application

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How do I create a renewal/amendment/closing report (Post Approval Activities/PAAs)?

On the study’s homepage, you will see options to create an amendment, renewal, or closing report (left-hand side in the grey area).

Study homepage, PAA buttons shown

For each type of submission you will need to answer questions related to that submission (i.e. an amendment or renewal form) and then submit the amendment/renewal to the REB/ACUC for review. For amendments, you will also need to edit your approved study (link on the last page of amendment form) to make any applicable changes so that the amendment changes are reflected in the application.

NOTE: for human participant research, you can only have one Post Approval Activity open at a time. Therefore if you have an amendment open, you will NOT see the button to create a renewal. For animal research, you can submit an amendment and a renewal at the same time, but not during a Full Renewal (4th-year renewals). See the help videos.

I received a notification that my study is due to expire but I already sent in my renewal.

There are a few reasons this could be happening:

  1. You may have created the renewal without submitting it (ie. it is still in Pre-submission). Find this renewal in your Dashboard Inbox, and click SUBMIT FOR REVIEW.
  2. Renewal reminders continue to go out until the renewal has been processed.
I submitted a Closing Report, but I received a notification that my application expired?
If you submitted a closing report too close to the study’s expiration date, the study may still expire. Once the Closing Report is processed, you will receive an acknowledgement of study closure by email notification.
I just renewed my study, but the approval date on the letter is wrong.

You may be looking at the study’s original approval letter, rather than the renewal approval letter.

Study main workspace
Image 1: Main workspace of a study. The original letter of approval is accessed here.

Approval letters for any post-approval activities (ie. amendments or renewals) will be found within the workspace specific to that amendment or renewal. You can find these workspaces in the study history (in image above: "View Renewal workspace" or by clicking on the renewal, amendment or PAA tab within the study (in image above: the "PAAs" tab is shown; could also be separate renewal or amendment tabs).

Study PAA workspace, view approval letter
Image 2: Example of a renewal workspace. The letter of approval here is for this renewal.

Once you locate the renewal or amendment submission you are looking for, click to open it and you will see “Letter of Approval” (in the same space where you see the PI, REB/ACUC, expiry date, etc) - click on “View”. See the help video.

My CCID doesn’t work.

Make sure you’re only using your CCID to login, and not your full ualberta.ca email address. Also, CCIDs are case-sensitive. Ensure you are typing it in correctly. You can test your CCID here: https://myccid.ualberta.ca/check

If you were given a Guest CCID to access ARISE (ie. you are not an employee or Faculty member of the U of A), it may have expired. Contact the Department/office that provided your Guest CCID. If it expired, they can reinstate it. After this, it can take 24-48 hours for Peoplesoft to sync with ARISE – and you will be able to log in again.

My name is not in the drop down menu when the PI tries to add me to their study.

If your name does not show up in a drop-down menu within the application you may not have the right “role” selected in your ARISE profile (ie. study coordinator or investigator). To fix this, log into ARISE and click the “Request Additional Roles” button to select the role you require (help video):

  1. Once you are in ARISE, click the Dashboard button (below the U of A logo).
  2. Click 'Request Additional Role' which is a button located on the left-hand side of the screen in the grey shaded area.
  3. Scroll down and check the ROLE that you are requesting – click Continue. Please note that not all applicants will qualify to hold all roles (i.e., only Academic Staff, students at the University of Alberta, or approved external applicant researchers will be able to have a Human Research - Principal Investigator role).
  4. Ensure your Registration Profile is complete by completing the four questions on the second page – click Finish. To search for your primary department - either scroll through the listing of University Department codes (i.e., Medicine is MH, Rehabilitation Medicine is RM) OR make sure the 'filter by' is set to 'Organization' to search and use the "%" before your Department name (i.e., write %Medicine or %Arts).
  5. Once you are finished click Submit Request and then OK to have the request processed.
  6. If you have selected a Role that you are eligible to hold in the system, you will receive a message that the role has been granted. If you are not eligible, the message will show that the request has been rejected.

NOTE: Animal researchers must complete Part 1: Animal Training before obtaining access to ARISE to request the role of "ACUC Applicant".

I've requested an additional role in ARISE, but it doesn't tell me I've been approved or denied.

You may have created the request without submitting it (ie. it’s in Pre-submission). To see if you have an unsubmitted role request, click on the “General” tab on your personal home page. If you have a request with a state of “Pre-submission” you must open that request and submit it. See the help video.

Pre-submission of role request in General tab

I don't see the Request Additional Role button

You likely already have started a request for an additional role that was not submitted. To see if you have an unsubmitted role request, click on the “General” tab on your personal home page. If you have a request with a state of “Pre-submission” you must open that request and submit it. See the help video.

Request Additional Roles button is missing

How do I add a new funding source to my approved study or how do I remove funding?
On the study’s homepage, click the “Change Funding” button (left-hand side in the grey area), and follow the prompts. NOTE: you cannot change funding by submitting an amendment, AND the Change Funding button is ONLY available on the Approved Study workspace. See the help documents: Animal Use or Human Research.
I cannot find my RES number in the drop down list when I try to add it to my approved ethics application?

The ARISE system and PeopleSoft system have been integrated to allow linkage of ethics applications to financial accounts. If you are trying to add a source of funding to your ethics application and the Proposal/Project ID number (RES00XXXXX) does not show up in the drop-down list check the following:

  1. Proposal/Project ID number (RES00XXXXX) will only show up in ARISE, if you have indicated "yes" that Human and/or Animal are required in the certification section through the Researcher Home Page
  2. Proposal/Project ID number (RES00XXXXX) will only show up in ARISE 24-48 hours after being requested through the Researcher Home Page, the two systems need time to "sync"
  3. If at least one of the people listed on the grant is NOT listed on the ethics application as either a PI or Co-PI, the Proposal/Project ID number will NOT show on the drop-down list in the ethics application:
    • FOR HUMAN ETHICS APPLICATIONS: Either PI in 1.1 (5.0) or Co-PI in 1.1 (9.0) in ARISE must be listed as the PI OR Co-PI named in the Proposal/Project (RES00XXXXX) on the Researcher Home Page.
    • FOR ANIMAL ETHICS APPLICATIONS: Either PI or EDIT staff in 1.1 (6.1) in ARISE must be listed as the PI OR Co-PI named in the Proposal/Project (RES00XXXXX) on the Researcher Home Page.

If you have checked these 3 things and New Proposal/Project ID number (RES00XXXXX) still does not show on the drop-down list, please contact rsoinfo@ualberta.ca.

The funding on my approval letter isn’t accurate.

If your approval letter lists an incorrect funding source, you will need to do 2 things.  First, complete the “Change Funding” process to update your application with the correct source of funding.  Next, contact your REB/ACUC administrator and they will have to update the most recent approval letter to reflect this new source of funding.

Change funding button

I created an application and added my Supervisor, but they cannot see the study in ARISE.

In ARISE, what you can see is unique to the role you are in. Make sure that your Supervisor is looking for the study in their “Supervisor” role and not their “Applicant” role. To change “roles” look on the top left-hand side of your Dashboard page and click on Supervisor. See help document for Supervisors.

supervisor-role.png

As supervisor, I want to add a funding source to my student’s study but I don't see an option to do this.
Supervisors cannot currently add funding to their student's application; the student who is named as the PI can make the change. You will have to provide the account information to your student, who can use the Change Funding activity to edit the funding associated with the approved study. See the help document for Change Funding.

ARISE Training

The Research Ethics Office hosts training sessions for users of the ARISE system. Sessions include an overview of how to use the online system in general, as well as a review of the specific questions asked on the ethics application. Sessions also provide an opportunity for users to ask questions about their applications.

Training sessions for REB applicants will be held monthly and run from 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. Space is limited; you must register in advance to attend. Register for a Human Research/ARISE Training Session (in-person and virtual offers by date).

Training sessions for ACUC applicants can be scheduled by contacting reoffice@ualberta.ca.