Graduate Advising

One of the most important decisions a student makes in graduate school is choosing an advisor or Principal Investigator (PI).

A PI is the individual responsible for the preparation, conduct and administration of a research grant, cooperative agreement, training or public service project, contract or other sponsored project.

Application for Protocol Approval for Animal Subjects

NOTE: This form must be typed, not handwritten.

Any research conducted by a student at SF State that involves human and/or animal [sic] subjects requires the prior approval of the Committee for the Protection of Human Subjects (CPHS) and/or the University Animal Care and Use Committee (UACUC).

Such approval must be obtained before the initiation of any research activity involving these subjects. There are no exceptions. Students will not be permitted to enroll in the Culminating Experience Course (BIOL 895/898) until CPHS and/or UACUC have approved the research activity. Animal Use Protocal Forms are required to be submitted along with the Culminating Experience Form.

Grad students planning research involving animals should contact these committees very early in their graduate studies. (Don't wait until the last minute. Permission to begin research takes a while to be granted.)

Note that not all organisms that are considered animals are governed by this requirement. Ask your major professor or these committees if your animal research species qualifies as an "animal" in this context.