Successful completion of one of the following pre-approved courses or workshops will satisfy the advanced RCR training requirement for graduate students studying on campus toward a MS report/thesis or PhD. Because several of these courses are taught on demand, students are encouraged to contact the instructor when they are planning their study curriculum to ensure the course will be offered during the semester they plan to take it.
Coursework Options
CM5621—Research Essentials
For additional information about this course, please contact: Dr. Rebecca Ong or Dr. Timothy Eisele.
Offered in Fall.
This course is intended to improve skills necessary for planning, conducting, analyzing, and presenting research; ethical and responsible conduct, critical evaluation of existing literature, written and oral communication, and experimental design and analysis.
BL5025—The Scientific Profession
(2 credits)
Instructor: Rotates
Offered in spring. Contact the Department of Biological Sciences for more information.
The practice of sciences for graduate students, including how to plan a research project, grantsmanship, publication, navigating the job market, and timely issues (e.g. ethical conduct, diversity and bias, etc.).
FW5811/UN5001—Advanced Responsible Conduct of Research in Natural Resources
(1 credit)
Instructor: Dr. Mark Rudnicki
Offered on demand in the summer. Contact the instructor for more information.
This three-day course offered between spring and summer semester will offer training in advanced RCR topics. The class will draw on examples relating to natural resources where possible, but is open to all students.
HU5711/EH5711—Bioethics
(3 credits)
For additional information about this course contact the Humanities Department
Examination of key bioethical issues, with an emphasis on problems in biomedical research ethics, novel therapies and developing technologies. Topics include disability, quality of life, research with vulnerable populations, research on animals, genetics technologies, and biomedical enhancement.
MEEM 5010—Professional Engineering Communication
(3 credits)
Contact the MAE department for more information.
This course will introduce graduate students to t he conventions of professional engineering communication such as composing technical memos and a variety of reports (test, design, progress , etc.). Students will learn and practice creating effective visuals for reports and slides and also develop and deliver presentations individually and in groups. Students will also learn and apply ethical decision-making and critical t hi n king skills. The course is designed for students interested i n a career i n applied engineering and management.
MEEM 6010—Engineering Research Communication
(2 credits)
Contact the MAE department for more information.
This course will guide graduate students through the process of conducting and publishing research in an ethical manner in technical journals and presenting that research at conferences and other venues. Students will receive regular, relevant feedback on their writing and presentation skills and will be expected to provide constructive feedback to their colleagues in the course. The course helps graduate students in engineering with their research-specific communication tasks. Students will work one-on-one with the instructor to complete a journal article, conference paper, proposal, etc., make progress on their dissertation, or other agreed- upon projects. Students will also learn the standard components of advanced writing tasks, including abstracts, literature reviews, CVs, proposals, critiques, and more. Also, students will deliver a complete scientific presentation with visual aids in a research colloquium format.
PSY 5020—Research Methods
(3 credits)
Instructor: Rotates
Offered in the spring. Contact the instructor for more information.
This course provides a foundation in research methods in cognitive science and human factors, with an emphasis on experimental design, research ethics, and scientific communication. This course meets Michigan Tech’s Advanced Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) requirements through its coverage of scientific misconduct, ethical standards of the discipline, RCR violations and sanctions, responsible publication and authorship practices, the peer review process, conflict of interest, societal expectations, and discipline-specific coverage of human-subject research.
SS4211 – Ethnographic Methods
(3 credits)
Instructor: Rotates
Offered in spring.
Contact the Social Sciences Department for more information. This seminar introduces ethnographic theory and methods. Course materials and discussions will include a survey of ethnographic methods such as interviews, participant observation, and other methods, and how these methods generate different knowledges. You will be introduced to techniques for collecting, coding, analyzing, and sharing qualitative data. Throughout the course, you will learn conventions and concerns of designing an ethnographic study, including developing a research question, completing human subjects protocols, and ethnographic analysis and writing. This course fulfills MTU’s advanced RCR training requirement.
SS5950 – Professional Development
(3 credits)
Instructor: Dr. Mark Rouleau
Offered in spring. Contact the instructor for more information.
This course is designed to provide students with a broad understanding of the expectations for graduate students as professionals and their success in diverse roles within academic, public, and private sectors. The fundamental principles of responsible conduct of research are woven throughout the course and include discussions on Ethics, Communication, Leadership, Teaching, Mentoring, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Case Studies and readings will be used to supplement critical concepts and more traditional RCR topics such as Research Misconduct, Data Management, Authorship, and Data Sovereignty.
SS6002—Research Design
(3 credits)
Instructor: Chelsea Schelly
Offered in the spring. Contact the instructor for more information.
This course is a general overview of issues on conducting social science research. Rather than provide students with in-depth knowledge of any particular method, this seminar will be the first step for graduate students in developing their professional and methodological knowledge about the trade-offs of various methods of data collection, the strengths and weakness of different types of analysis, and the components of rigorous research design generally. This course is meant to introduce you to the diversity of thought and approaches to social science research; it is not meant to be specialized training course preparing you with the skills and experience to master a particular method.
UN5500—Research Integrity Workshop
(1 credit)
Instructor: Dr. Mike Bowler
Offered on demand in summer. Contact the instructor for more information.
Three 4-hour workshops introduce students to the principles, practices, and regulations of responsible conduct of research.