CITI Training Instructions

EKU subscribes to the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) to provide online training for various research compliance topics.  To register for a new account, please go to the CITI home page and follow the instructions below.  To add a course to an existing CITI account, please skip to the instructions at the end of this page.  

Registering for a CITI Program Training Account

Go to CITI home page and click on the “Register” button in the blue section on the right side of the page.  

Step 1:  Type “Eastern Kentucky University” as the Organization Affiliation, agree to the Terms and Conditions, and then click “Continue to Step 2.”  Important: Do not select the option to register as an independent learner in this step.  

Step 2: Enter your first and last name and email address.  Enter your name here as you would like it to appear on your completion report received at the end of each course. Be sure to use an email address that you can access so that you can complete the registration process by verifying the email. While not required, entering a secondary email address is encouraged.  This will assist in the recovery of your account if you forget your username or password and no longer have access to your primary email address. 

Step 3: Choose a username, password, and security question.  The username must consist of 4 to 50 characters.  The username is not case sensitive; "A12B34CD" is the same as "a12b34cd."  The password must consist of 8 to 50 characters and is case sensitive; "A12B34CD" is not the same as "a12b34cd."

During this step, you will also select and answer a security question. This question will be used to assist in the recovery of your account if you forget your username or password. Please select a question that is applicable to you and that you can comfortably answer for the tech support team.

Step 4: Enter your country of residence (United States). 

Step 5: If you want to request Continuing Education Unit (CEU) credit for your course completion, you can specify in this step.  This is not required and is an unusual request for faculty, staff, and students at EKU.  The second question in this step asks for your preference in participating in research surveys at a later date.

Step 6: Complete the personal information requested.  The required fields are marked with an asterisk (*).  All other fields can be left blank. 

• For the role in research, choose a role that is most appropriate for your involvement in research.  Student researchers should choose one of the two student researcher options. 
• For the course you plan to take, select: One of the Basic Human Subjects options if you are working with human subjects (not the refresher course); Laboratory Animal Welfare if you are working with animals; Responsible Conduct of Researchif you are completing only the RCR training (typically as part of a grant award); or Other if you are not completing any of the above three options.

Step 7: Select your curriculum, based on the following options. 

• Item 1: If you are planning to conduct human subjects research, select the Biomedical or Social/Behavioral Research option, depending on the nature of your primary research assignments.  The course for IRB Members should not be taken by researchers; that course is only for individuals who are appointed to the IRB.  The Refresher courses are valid only for the renewal of CITI certifications, which are valid for a period of three years.  If you are not planning to conduct human subjects research, you should skip this item. 
• Item 2: If you are setting up a new account, this item is not relevant because it is only relevant for those who have already registered and completed training.  All new registrants should select “I have not completed the Basic Course” here. 
• Item 3:  If you plan to take the course on Responsible Conduct of Research, select the option most appropriate for the type of research in which you will typically be involved.  Otherwise, select “not at this time.”  The RCR course is not required for IRB or IACUC review purposes.  The course is used by faculty, staff, and students who are working on NSF- or NIH-funded grant programs. 
• Item 4: If you plan to take the course on Conflicts of Interest, select “yes;” otherwise, select “no.”  This course is required for all key personnel on projects to be submitted for funding consideration by a Public Health Services agency. 
• Item 5: If you are using animal subjects, choose the option for “Working with the IACUC.”  The “Essentials for IACUC Members” course is only for individuals who have been appointed to the IACUC and should not be completed by researchers or others using live animals.  In addition to “Working with the IACUC,” choose: the module on “Minimizing Pain and Distress” if you anticipate conducting studies that have the potential to cause more than momentary pain and distress; the Module on “Aseptic Surgery” if you plan to conduct major survival surgeries or non-survival surgeries in non-rodent species; and Relevant Species Specific Modules.  If you are not working with animals, you should skip this item.
• Item 6: At the time these instructions were created, there was no Item 6 in the registration process.

• Item 7: If you plan to complete the Biosafety course, select the appropriate learner group.  Otherwise, select “Not at this time.”

• Item 8: If you plan to complete the Information Privacy Security course, select the appropriate learner group.  Otherwise, select “I am not required to complete the IPS course at this time."

Step 8:  If you want to affiliate with another institution, click on the link to do so.  Otherwise, click on the link to “Finalize Registration.”  Typically, there will not be a need to affiliate with another institution.  Exceptions would be if you are working at EKU while pursuing graduate studies at another University or if you are collaborating with a researcher at another University that will need access to your training records. 

Step 9: Check your email for a link to confirm your registration.  After validating your email address, you will have access to the Main Menu of your account and are ready to begin your coursework. 

Adding a Course to an Existing Account

Log in to your CITI account.  Under the “Learner Tools” section of the main menu, click on the link to “Add a Course or Update Learner Groups.”  Update choices for relevant items and then click on “Submit.”  The updated courses will appear in the course menu. 

Completing CITI Courses

Begin by logging into your CITI account.  To begin a course, click on the name of the course you wish to complete.  You will see information about the requirements to complete the course and links to each module within the course.

You must first complete the Integrity Assurance Statement.  After completing the Integrity Assurance Statement, the links to the course modules will become active.  You can use the links at the end of each module to go to the next module or click on each module title from the menu as it becomes active.  Each module consists of reading materials followed by a quiz.  Once you have read the reading material, click on the link to take the quiz.  Answer each item on the quiz and the click the “Submit” button.   

After completing each quiz, you will immediately see your score and feedback for each question answered incorrectly in the quiz.  From the feedback page, you may proceed directly to the next module or return to the Main Menu.  From the Gradebook for your course, you will be able to see your cumulative score and the minimum score required to pass that particular course.  For most courses, an average of score of 75% or 80% is required.

Once all modules have been completed with a passing average score, you will be able to access the Completion Report from the Main Menu.  Be sure to print your Completion Report, but you can also access it later from the Main Menu.  You can return to the Main Menu at any time by clicking the Main Menu link at the top of the page. 

From the Main Menu, you can access courses in progress, print completion reports earned, add courses to your account, or update your account information.

Getting Help

For assistance, you may contact Sponsored Programs (by email to Lisa.Royalty@eku.edu or Tiffany.Hamblin@eku.edu) or the CITI Help Desk (by telephone at 305-243-7970 or online).