Welcome to Reviewing and Managing Researchers' Conflicts of Interest In academic institutions, relationships between scientific investigators and industry sponsors is increasing. As institutions depend more on this funding, they need to assure the public of the integrity of research, especially research involving human subjects. How do institutions help manage competing interests in order to protect research subjects, assure objectivity, and guard against both the reality and appearance of compromised research? Institutions must respond by involving researchers and administrators in a systematic process of monitoring and responding to political conflicts of interest. This online course is part of a two-course response to issues related to conflicts of interest within the University. The purpose of this course, targeted to department chairs, deans, and conflict review committee members, is to enhance consistency in applying policies and making decisions regarding researchers' disclosures and plans to resolve potential conflicts of interest. It is being offered in conjunction with a primary course for researchers, which addresses Federal, State, and University policies regarding conflict of interest, disclosure procedures and benefits, and the development of plans to manage potential conflicts of interest. (The course for researchers can be accessed by clicking on FIRST Home in the left navigation bar. Then, click on Electronic Courses at the bottom to access the course from the FIRST home page.) When you are ready to start the course, click the first module on the Course Module menu. The Reviewing and Managing Researchers’ Potential Conflicts of Interest Course consists of five modules that you can access from the menu on the left. To be certain your computer is set up to provide the best results with this course, click here. Resources are available by clicking here. © 2004 by the Regents of the University of Minnesota. All rights reserved. The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity educator and employer. This Web site was last modified on June 4, 2004 The URL of this Web site is http://www.research.umn.edu/coi/index.shtml This site has been accessed times since September 2, 2004