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CITI Program Training

If you are currently affiliated with UNC, please login with your Onyen here:

UNC ONYEN Login

If you are listed as research personnel on a UNC IRB but do not have an active UNC Onyen, login here:

Non-UNC CITI Login

  • Create a username and password to log-on to CITI using the “Guest or CITI Login” option.
  • Select University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as your Participating Institution.
  • Note: If you have a UNC Hospital ID, please enter it in the  UNC PID field, if you do not have a UNC PID.
  • Note: It is important that the email address that you entered into email field on the CITI website match the email address entered into the IRB application.
CITI Program Training Instructions
Once you log into the CITI website, click here to access the CITI Program Training Instructions.

After you have completed the CITI Program Online course, your training course completion history will be added to the UNC Human Research Ethics Training Database.  UNC affiliated staff can go there to generate a completion certificate.

Additional Information


The Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) is a web-based training package on issues relating to human subjects research.  The completion of an appropriate set of CITI modules with a passing score of 80% or better on the quizzes is required of all researchers at UNC-CH doing Human Subject Research prior to beginning research and renewed every 3 years.

Additionally, UNC-CH & UNC HCS researchers doing clinical human subjects and a drug, device, or biologic research are required to also complete Good Clinical Practice (GCP) modules initially upon funding and then renewed every 3 years.   GCP training is a requirement of NIH to receive funding.

The CITI web site is maintained by the University of Miami, with content developed by a national consortium. CITI contains modules on topics like informed consent, vulnerable populations, ethical principles and IRB regulations. Each module has a short quiz at the end to assess understanding. Over 1300 institutions are using CITI for their mandatory training.

The modules are grouped by categories of research. You only need to complete one group of modules. You should choose the group that best fits the type of research you normally conduct. If in doubt, ask your IRB.

  • Group 1: Biomedical Research: Medical, physiological or pharmacological studies that typically involve direct contact with subjects. Includes, but is not limited to, research with drugs, devices or other interventions.
  • Group 2: Social and Behavioral Research: Studies on sociological, psychological, anthropological or educational phenomena that typically involve direct contact with subjects. Does not include drug or device studies.
  • Group 3: Data and Specimens ONLY: No direct contact with human subjects. Research limited to use of records, data (including secondary data sets), or biological samples.
  • In addition to the required modules, you should complete any “OPTIONAL” modules that apply to your research projects.

Effective March 15, 2005, completion of the CITI Basic Course is required of all study personnel who are engaged in the planning, conduct or analysis of research at UNC-Chapel Hill that involves human subjects.

Effective January 1, 2017, CITI Good Clinical Practice (GCP) training is additionally required of all UNC-CH investigators and research staff who are involved in the design, conduct, or reporting of clinical trials involving human subjects.  A refresher course will be required every three years.  The GCP training requirement is in addition to the OHRE requirement for Human Research Ethics Training (CITI Human Subjects Research Protection modules). If you have further questions regarding the required GCP training, please contact the UNC Chapel Hill IRB CITI Training Coordinator or call 919-966-3113.

  • If you login using the UNC CITI Login or if the team member’s original CITI registration record included a PID (the University’s personal identifier number for faculty, staff, students, and some other associates of UNC-Chapel Hill), the CITI completion record will be linked automatically to the IRB’s information system.
  • If the team member does not have a UNC-CH PID, please use the Guest or CITI Login option above.
  • If you have a UNC Hospital ID, please enter it in the UNC PID field, if you do not have a UNC PID.
  • Please note: It is not necessary to forward your completed CITI course information to the UNC-Chapel Hill office in order to be entered in to the database. UNC-Chapel Hill is automatically notified once you have completed the CITI Course. Your name will appear in the Human Research Ethics Training Database within 48 business hours.
Human subjects research presents many challenges. As with any complex and evolving area, continuing education is critical. Inadequate training in these issues is recognized as one reason that some researchers and their institutions have experienced problems. UNC-Chapel Hill is committed to upholding the highest standards of ethical conduct and regulatory compliance in research. The enhanced training available through CITI will increase the level of awareness and understanding about these issues across our research community and help us fulfill these important obligations.
If you are listed as research personnel on a UNC based study, and have completed CITI training at another institution, (1) log-on to CITI using your existing CITI username and password, (2) click “affiliate with another institution,” (3) select University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as your Participating Institution. If you have not previously completed all the training modules required by UNC-CH, you may be prompted to complete additional modules.
This will depend on your experience with human research issues. Most modules will take about 10-20 minutes to complete. Researchers familiar with these topics may require three hours or less to complete all the required modules. You do not have to complete all the modules at once. CITI is designed for you to work at your own pace and allows you to exit and return later to where you left off.
You must receive a total passing score of 80% after completing all the required modules. You can track your progress on-line by clicking on the GRADE BOOK. If you do not obtain a total passing score of at least 80%, you can return to the modules and retake the quizzes.  The refresher course requires a passing score of 80%.
The University pays an annual fee for all UNC-Chapel Hill users. Individual UNC-Chapel Hill users are not assessed a fee for the CITI training unless continuing medical education credit is requested (see below).
Effective June 1, 2020, continuing education is required every 3 years.
Please contact the UNC Chapel Hill IRB CITI Training Coordinator.
Please visit the CITI Program Support Center and review the Continuing Education topic for additional details.