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Office of Human Research

Office of the Vice Provost for Research

Convened Institutional Review Board

The George Washington University (GW) has two Institutional Review Boards (IRBs), the Gold IRB and the Blue IRB, both of which are responsible for reviewing and approving human subject research to protect the rights and welfare of participants. Each IRB reviews research in accordance with the applicable regulatory criteria for approval.

The committees discuss each submission presented for review (i.e., new study, continuing review, modification, or promptly reportable new information (PRIF)), and determine whether the criteria of approval for human subject research (as defined by the regulations) are met. The IRBs will decide to either approve, require modifications to secure approval, defer, or disapprove the submission.

  • If the submission is deferred, it means that there is not enough information for the IRB to determine if the regulatory criteria for approval have been met, and the review item will need to return to a future board meeting for further review.

Each IRB has one meeting per month:

  • The Gold IRB primarily reviews biomedical research and meets on the second Tuesday of every month.
  • The Blue IRB primarily reviews social and behavioral research and meets on the fourth Tuesday of every month.

GW Office of Human Research (OHR) staff can provide additional information as to when a particular submission will be scheduled for convened board review. The ability to schedule a submission to a board meeting depends upon the pre-review response time (both by the OHR staff and the study team), the IRB's meeting agenda, and the expertise that may be required for the review. Once a study is reviewed by the IRB, the OHR staff will communicate any changes requested by the IRB and will work with the PI and study team to resolve any issues.

Please Note: Not all research requires convened IRB review. Most minimal risk studies are reviewed through an exempt or expedited regulatory review procedure. These exempt or expedited regulatory reviews occur on a rolling basis and do not require review by the convened board. If you are unsure if your study will require convened IRB review, please contact us.