Streamlining Cross-Campus Research: New Global Reliance Agreement for BU-CRC Students

January 2026 Issue

Author(s):

  • Matt Ogrodnik, MS, CIP, OHRA Director

PRINT

 

Introduction

Research collaboration between Boston University Charles River Campus (BU-CRC) and Boston University Medical Campus (BUMC), along with Boston Medical Center (BMC), has long been a cornerstone of the institutions’ multidisciplinary approach to advancing knowledge. However, the administrative requirements for involving CRC students receiving academic credit for their work in human subjects research activities conducted at BUMC or BMC have historically created procedural bottlenecks. Each study required individual reliance agreements between the BMC/BUMC and BU-CRC Institutional Review Boards (IRBs), which was a time-consuming process that could delay student onboarding and add burden to research teams.

That process has now changed for the better. CRC and BMC/BUMC have established a global reliance agreement between the CRC and BMC/BUMC IRBs, covering all CRC students engaged in research at BMC/BUMC for academic credit or as part of academic program requirements. This agreement eliminates the need for individual per-study reliance agreements and allows students to be added to research protocols through a streamlined internal process.

 

What Changed and Why It Matters

Under the previous system, whenever a CRC student wished to collaborate on a BMC or BUMC study and receive academic credit for their work, a formal reliance agreement had to be executed between the two IRBs. A reliance agreement is a formal arrangement between two or more institutions that allows one IRB to “cede” to another for the review and oversight of a particular research study. These agreements facilitate regulatory compliance while avoiding duplicative reviews, but they require administrative effort, including submission to both IRBs and collaboration between reliance specialists at each site.

The new global reliance agreement improves this process. Rather than requiring separate agreements for each study, the institutional-level “global” agreement covers all CRC students receiving academic credit for their work in BUMC/BMC human subjects research going forward. Students are now considered “internal study personnel” and can be added to approved IRB submissions through the same streamlined process used for other internal BUMC/BMC study team members.

The benefits are substantial and include:

Faster onboarding: Students can begin contributing to research more quickly, without waiting for individual reliance agreements to be processed.

Reduced administrative burden: Research teams and IRB staff no longer need to manage reliance agreements and amendment submissions for student collaborators.

Enhanced educational opportunities: By removing procedural barriers, more CRC students can gain hands-on research experience at BUMC/BMC facilities.

Simplified compliance: A single, comprehensive agreement provides clear guidance and consistent oversight across all student collaborations.

 

How to Add BU Charles River Campus Students to BMC/BUMC Studies

Thanks to the global reliance agreement, the process to add CRC students to BUMC/BMC research protocols is greatly simplified. Students who are engaged in research—meaning they conduct the informed consent process, interact or intervene with subjects for research purposes, or access identifiable data—are now added as internal study personnel.

In order to add CRC students to your study, you need to submit an Internal Study Personnel Change form. This is the same form used to add other internal team members to approved protocols. There is no longer a need to submit a Change Request and Amendment form to add CRC students.

Instructions for completing this form are here:

How to add/remove internal investigators/research staff in an approved protocol (Section 3)

Prior to submitting the form, you must confirm that the student(s) have completed the required training. If they do not have active training, the form will be returned to you as incomplete, with instructions not to resubmit until the necessary certification(s) are complete.

Human Subjects Protection training – Required for all individuals involved in human subject research studies (exempt and non-exempt) who have contact with subjects or their identifiable data.  

Good Clinical Practice (GCP) training – Required for all individuals involved in the conduct of clinical trials.

Institutional Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) training – Required for all individuals involved in clinical research studies that target BMC patients, use BMC patient data, or utilize BMC facilities and/or services. (Note: this training is an institutional requirement, and not an IRB requirement).

On the CRC side, the student no longer needs to submit any documentation to the CRC IRB. The student simply needs to be added to the active BMC/BUMC IRB submission, by following the steps above.

 

What About Adding BU Charles River Campus Faculty or Staff?

While the global reliance agreement simplifies the process for students, adding CRC faculty and staff who are engaged in research at BUMC/BMC must continue to follow a different process. This distinction reflects the different levels of responsibility and institutional accountability associated with faculty/staff versus student roles in research. Students typically participate under faculty supervision and in more limited capacities, making a blanket institutional agreement both practical and appropriate. Faculty collaborations, by contrast, often involve greater independence, decision-making authority, and regulatory obligations that warrant case-by-case evaluation. For example, when CRC faculty or staff are engaged in human subjects research in a multi-site study with BMC/BUMC, CRC may be receiving funding for their site activities, and/or the faculty/staff will have principal investigator or co-investigator roles and responsibilities. These scenarios require reliance agreements between the two institutions.  BMC, BUMC, and CRC currently maintain separate Federalwide Assurance registrations with the Office of Human Research Protections. Thus, when CRC faculty/staff are engaged in cooperative research with BMC or BUMC, the CRC IRB either needs to maintain their own local IRB oversight, or agree to formally cede review to the BMC/BUMC IRB.

Instructions for adding CRC faculty or staff under a reliance agreement are here:

How to add BU CRC Students, Faculty, or Employees to your study

Important: If you have mistakenly submitted an Internal Study Personnel Change form for a CRC faculty member or employee, contact the IRB at medirb@bu.edu immediately to request that the form be returned for correction. You can then delete the CRC faculty/employee from the Internal Study Personnel Change form and resubmit it, or request that the IRB withdraw the request entirely.

 

Moving Forward: Enhanced Collaboration Across Campuses

The establishment of this global reliance agreement represents a step forward in facilitating cross-campus research collaboration at Boston University and Boston Medical Center. Students are able to engage more quickly in meaningful research experiences, research teams gain efficiency by avoiding administrative processes and longer review times, and IRB staff can allocate their expertise to substantive protocol review rather than processing routine amendments.
If you have any questions about this new process, do not hesitate to reach out to the IRB: