College of Public Health Guidebooks

Contract Courses

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Last updated: May 12, 2022Version comment
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Below is a list of the College of Public Health contract courses required for a variety of academic programs. These contracts will serve as permits. Please read this information thoroughly as it will help you understand requirements and required paperwork.

Meeting the USF Institutional Review Board requirement for Human Research Protections

Students registering for the following courses may be required to have a current Human Research Protections certificate on file with the USF Division of Research Integrity and Compliance. Students taking the Special Project for the first time will take CITI course. The Human Research Protections courses are online and take about 2 hours to complete; students taking these courses in multiple semesters will be required to complete a continuing education course when their certificate is out of date. For more information on these requirements, or printing certificates of completion, please go to the USF Research Integrity and Compliance website.

For helpful instructions on CITI registration, please click on the following link: CITI Human Subject Protection Education Program Registration Process.

Please be advised that on Contracts for Specialized Study (PhD/DrPH), and Directed Research (PhD/DrPH), only the specific faculty member that is actually working with the student on the project and will be giving the grade is allowed to sign as the Instructor. No other faculty member may sign for that Instructor. This is to ensure that the proper faculty member is responsible for submitting the grade and gets credit for working with that student. 


Independent Study (PHC 6907): 1-6 credits (S / U Grade Only) (MPH, MSPH, MHA students)

  • All Independent Study contracts must be submitted via Archivum. Please view the instructions before submitting. 
  • Talk to your faculty mentor regarding any specific requirements for IRB*.

Special Project (PHC 6977): 3 credits (S / U Grade Only) (MPH, MHA students)
  • All Special Project contracts must be submitted via Archivum. Please view the instructions before submitting.
  • Upload CITI Training Certificate
  • Talk to your faculty mentor regarding any specific requirements for IRB*.

Directed Research (PHC 7910): 1-19 credits (S / U Grade Only)

  • All Directed Research contracts must be submitted via Archivum. Please view the instructions before submitting.
  • Upload CITI Training Certificate
  • Talk to your faculty mentor regarding any specific requirements for IRB*.

Specialized Study (PHC 7908): 1-9 credits (S / U Grade Only)

  • All Specialized Study contracts must be submitted via Archivum. Please view the instructions before submitting.
  • Talk to your faculty mentor regarding any specific requirements for IRB*.

Applied Practice Experience (PHC 6949): 3 credits (Regular Grade) (MPH Students)

  • All Applied Practice Experience (APE) contracts must be submitted via Archivum. Please view the instructions before submitting.
  • Talk to your faculty mentor regarding any specific requirements for IRB*.

Integrated Learning Experience (PHC 6943): 3 credits (Regular Grade) (MPH Students)

  • All Integrated Learning Experience (ILE) contracts must be submitted via Archivum. Please view the instructions before submitting.
  • Upload CITI Training Certificate
  • Talk to your faculty mentor regarding any specific requirements for IRB*.

Supervised Field Experience (PHC 6945): 1-12 credits (S / U Grade Only) (MPH, MHA, MSPH students)
  • Download the contract and submit the completed document to: fehelp@usf.edu. See the Field Experience website for detailed information. 
  • Submit the above documents to the COPH Academic and Student Affairs Office to receive a permit to register.

Thesis (PHC 6971) : 2-19 credits (S / U Grade Only) (MSPH students)

  • Talk to your faculty mentor regarding any specific requirements for IRB. 
  • All Thesis contracts must be submitted via Archivum. Please view the instructions before submitting.

See the Graduate School's Thesis/Dissertation page for more instructions on USF requirements and deadlines.


MHA Internship (PHC 6941): 2 credits (S / U Grade Only) (MHA Students)

  • All internship contracts must be emailed to and approved by your instructor. Instructor approvals must then be submitted to the cophpermits@usf.edu.


MHA Internship Report (PHC 6917): 2 credits (S / U Grade Only) (MHA Students)

  • All internship contracts must be emailed to and approved by your instructor. Instructor approvals must then be submitted to the cophpermits@usf.edu.


Institutional Review Board Approval (IRB)*

All research investigators at USF are responsible for submitting human subject research for review by the USF IRB (and additional IRBs if required) prior to starting a research study. If it is not clear what type of human subjects (exempt, expedited, full board) approval is required; students should consult the USF Office of Research Integrity & Compliance in collaboration with their mentor. Only the IRB can determine if the research being conducted falls under the exempt category. Research investigators must prepare a protocol giving a complete description of the proposed research, a detailed application and, when appropriate, a sample of the proposed informed consent form. All protocols and related forms must be submitted electronically to the IRB via eIRB, which can be accessed online on the Research Integrity and Compliance website.

The letter from the IRB indicating approval or designation of non research should be submitted as an appendix in any final document.

Links for IRB Education



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