Research Integrity

All new scientific staff take part in a dedicated research integrity-specific induction.  This provides a broad introduction to research integrity in the UK, following the structure of the Concordat to Support Research Integrity and introducing the principles and policies of Cancer Research UK and the University of Manchester.

We use case studies and small group exercies to bring these concepts to life, looking at how the principles of research integrity – honesty, rigour, transparency and open communication, care and respect and accountability – apply in areas such as animal research, handling human tissue samples, dealing with conflict and raising concerns.

The session also introduces the wide variety of activities and resources available to staff and students to help support them in conducting their research to the highest standards of integrity.  These include training and development opportunities from the University of Manchester, the Office for Open Research, professional networks and organisations including the UK Reproducibility Network and UK Research Integrity Office, as well as in-house support for designing and conducting experiments and managing data and analysis.  We also explore wider aspects of research culture, and how this impacts on research practice and integrity.

All attendees receive a follow-up email with materials from the induction, which leads into a rolling programme of training and development across the Institute.

Pre-Submission Reviews are not the same as peer reviews.  They happen internally, before journal submission, and are there for the support of the authors.  Scientific publishing is an increasingly complex process, and the pre-submission review provides an opportunity to share new and emerging standards of practice with authors, helping them meet publisher and funder requirements and guidance in areas such as FAIR data sharing, reproducible methods, authorship and ethics.

For more background on the pre-submission review process, see this CRUK research integrity blog post from Dr Catherine Winchester, who performs pre-submission reviews in her role as Head of the Research Integrity Service at the Cancer Research UK Scotland Institute: Research with integrity – the importance of communication

New PhD students take part in a four week tutorial course titled “How to read a paper” which explores best practice in citation ethics, tools for tracking and managing your reading, and raises awareness of current research integrity issues in scientific publishing, including paper mills.

Final year PhD students are offered a PhD Thesis Skills Session, which looks at all the processes required for compiling and submitting a thesis at the University of Manchester, as well as offering advice on further steps into scientific publishing and managing the data collected.  Each participant completes a self-assessment form to identify their own strengths and weaknesses, and as the course runs early in the final year of the PhD, students have time to participate in various top-up training programmes to build their knowledge and skills in the areas they choose.

• In most cases, your first port of call is with your supervisor or PI – this is likely to resolve many issues, especially if raised early
• If you feel comfortable doing so, we encourage you to speak to colleagues directly with your questions or comments
• If you would like more advice – either before or after the steps above – you can contact me for a chat – this can be confidential if you prefer
• More serious concerns can be taken to Caroline Wilkinson (COO), Stuart Pepper (CLO) or Caroline Dive (Institute Director) directly
• Our hope is that most concerns can be addressed through these pathways, but you are always free to go directly to the UoM Research Governance, Ethics and Integrity Team