Ethics during your research

Academic integrity and ethics 

he UG stands for ethically responsible teaching and research. Academic integrity is monitored by assessing research against the most stringent national and international standards. It is sensible to take this into account when devising your research strategy.

Codes of conduct and regulations

If you familiarize yourself with the codes of conduct and regulations relating to academic integrity and ethics before you start your research, you will be able to take them into account in your research set-up. It is also important to realize that academic integrity is a shared responsibility within the UG, and that you have a duty to address and ultimately report any misconduct in this respect. You can direct any questions or complaints regarding academic integrity to one of the confidential advisors for academic integrity.

Ethics committees

Ethics committees play an important role in assessing the ethical standard of your research. A lot of faculties have their own ethics committees. Certain types of research must first be assessed by an ethics committee to check that they satisfy all of the requirements and may actually be carried out. You will find more information about your faculty’s ethics committee on the faculty page. 

Further information

Read more about the academic integrity standards, the Academic Integrity Committee, filing a complaint, and the contact details of confidential advisors.

• Research ethics

Regulations and codes of conduct are shown here:

• Academic Integrity

More information per faculty

Data protection and privacy

Research projects often involve personal data. To comply with the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation), you must observe certain rules relating to data protection and privacy. But how should you integrate this into your research plan, and which support can you rely on?

Research data

Collecting and processing research data often brings you into contact with personal, sensitive information. It is important to handle all data with great care. This includes primary data obtained from interviews or questionnaires, and secondary data containing personal information. The rules regarding data protection and privacy are laid down in the GDPR.

If you think that you may need to process high-risk data in the course of your research, it is sensible to carry out a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) to check the privacy risks of your research. In your preparation, remember that you must always ask those participating in your research to fill in a consent form compiled in line with the GDPR guidelines.

If you need support with the matters described above, or if you have more general questions about data protection, privacy, data security, or data safety, you can contact the privacy & security coordinator of your faculty. The privacy & security coordinator can check whether you should submit your research to your faculty’s ethics committee before you proceed. Alternatively, you can ask the Digital Competence Centre (DCC) for advice and support. The DCC gives training courses about data and software management, and privacy in research.

• Digital Competence Centre

More information per faculty

Are you planning to start an international cooperation, agreement, or to welcome a (guest) researcher? Check for knowledge security issues and contact the Knowledge Security Advisory Team if necessary.