The task of the Research Ethics Committee is to ensure that research involving study participants is conducted in an ethically responsible and sound manner.

The committee was established in response to increasing demands for institutional approval of projects that fall outside the scope of the Act on Research Ethics Review of Health Research Projects and Health Data Science Research Projects. These demands come from international journals and the EU's research and innovation framework programs, where the EU recommends a central, interdisciplinary approval committee. The committee is therefore composed of members from all faculties of the university.

The committee consists of 11 members, one of whom is the chair. The deans appoint two ordinary members each, based on recommendations from the Academic Council, and the chair is appointed by the rector and must have a legal background. The members of the committee are appointed for a period of 3 years.

Tasks

The committee is available to AU-affiliated researchers, including PhD students, who seek ethical approval for parts of a planned empirical study involving voluntary study participants. The committee exclusively assesses planned empirical studies or parts thereof that fall outside the existing health science committee system and are led by researchers employed at AU.

The committee only reviews planned empirical studies that, as part of a research project, collect data from voluntary study participants, including observational studies and surveys involving personal data. The committee distinguishes between "research project" and "study." Only empirical studies involving people and their surroundings are subject to ethical review by the committee.

Based on the application, the committee must assess and, if applicable, approve that such studies are planned to be conducted in accordance with generally recognized standards for the ethical treatment of study participants, including institutional, national, and international practices and standards for research ethics. Approval is granted on the condition that the project leaders ensure that the research will be conducted as described in the application.

Birgitte Egelund Olsen is also an advisor on responsible research practices and academic freedom at Aarhus BSS, and has experience working in councils and committees both within and outside the university, including as an ad hoc appointed chair of the Aarhus University Practice Committee and as chair of the Environmental and Food Appeals Board.

Read more about the committee

Read more about Birgitte Egelund Olsen