No dissertation involving human participants can begin data collection without IRB (Institutional Review Board) approval. This guide covers every section of the application, risk assessment, informed consent, recruitment, and data protection, and the most common reasons proposals get sent back.
An IRB (or research ethics board / ethics committee, depending on your country) proposal is a formal application demonstrating that your proposed study protects the rights, safety, and privacy of human participants. It is reviewed independently of your dissertation committee. Passing your proposal defense does not mean you have IRB approval, and you cannot collect data until you have both.
Most institutions sort applications into three review tiers:
Submit early. Full board review can take 4–8 weeks and often requires revisions before approval. Submit your IRB application as soon as your proposal is defended. Don't wait until you're ready to collect data.
| Section | Content |
|---|---|
| Study summary | Purpose, research questions, methodology in plain language |
| Participant population | Who, how many, inclusion/exclusion criteria |
| Recruitment procedures | How participants are identified and approached |
| Informed consent process | How and when consent is obtained; consent form attached |
| Data collection procedures | Exactly what participants will be asked to do |
| Risk and benefit assessment | Potential harms, and how they're mitigated |
| Confidentiality and data security | Storage, anonymization, retention, access |
| Appendices | Consent form, recruitment materials, instruments |
The IRB's central question is whether risks to participants are minimized and reasonable relative to anticipated benefits. Address every plausible risk explicitly, even small ones:
Our dissertation specialists help draft consent forms, risk assessments, and full IRB applications aligned to your methodology chapter.
The consent form and process must give a prospective participant everything needed to decide freely whether to take part. Required elements typically include:
Match your consent form to your actual procedure. A common rejection reason is a mismatch between the consent form and the methodology section. E.g., the methods describe audio-recording interviews but the consent form doesn't mention recording. Every procedure described in your methodology must appear in the consent form.
Specify concretely, not generically:
No. Any contact with potential participants, including recruitment posts, emails, or flyers, requires IRB approval first. Starting recruitment beforehand is a serious compliance violation that can jeopardize your entire study and your standing in the program.
Often not, but this is determined by your IRB, not by you. Secondary analysis of de-identified public datasets is frequently exempt, but you must still submit a determination request rather than assuming exemption.
Any change to your approved protocol, new recruitment channels, additional questions, a different population, requires an amendment submitted to the IRB before you implement the change. Significant deviations without amendment can invalidate already-collected data.