Ethics
Exemplify the good in research
The University of Notre Dame Graduate School aims to develop researchers who not only produce excellent scholarship but also advance the highest ethical aspirations in their fields. We provide programming, open to all graduate students and postdocs, that goes beyond compliance training to explore the moral foundations of research and its role in serving the common good.
Graduate School research ethics training for doctoral degrees
All doctoral students should complete the following two-part ethics training sequence prior to advancing to candidacy in their program:
1. Pre-Candidacy Workshop: Research and the Public Trust
- Timing: First or second year.
- Format: 90-minute, small-group discussion.
- Focus: The nature, purpose, and justification of the modern research enterprise; the processes by which ethical norms in research have been established and sustained or neglected.
2. Pre-Candidacy Workshop: Ethical Theory and Research Practice
- Timing: First or second year.
- Format: 90-minute, small-group discussion.
- Focus: Leading approaches in philosophical ethics and how they can be applied to real-world practical challenges in the research context.
Register any time here. Workshops are scheduled on a rolling basis in response to registrations. You will be placed into a multidisciplinary group of 10-15 students, and sessions will then be scheduled among that group by email. Completion is recorded in your Graduate School record.
Further opportunities
For students interested in pursuing original research in research ethics and preparing a scholarly presentation or manuscript, the Graduate School provides fellowship training with tailored one-on-one or small-group mentoring lasting one or more semesters. This training is shaped around the student’s goals and interests, with sustained, critical dialogue refining the work into a quality seminar and/or article. Contact Allan Loup (aloup@nd.edu) or GSEthics@nd.edu for more information.
Campus partners and related opportunities
- Institute for Ethics and the Common Good
- Institute for Social Concerns
- Center for Ethics and Culture
- Reilly Center for Science, Technology, and Values
- Leaders Advancing Socially Engaged Research (LASER)
Questions? Contact GSEthics@nd.edu.