The Role of BEN FREC
BEN FREC manages the ethics review process within the Faculty for the Built
Environment.
Submitting a URECA Form to BEN FREC
Anyone carrying out research, must fill in the URECA Form before beginning data
collection.
Research is defined on page one of the University of Malta Research Ethics Review
Procedures as “A systematic investigation, including research development, testing
and evaluation, designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge.”
Students can submit the URECA Form after the title and supervisor of their
dissertation/thesis have been approved by the Faculty Board, and the research
method has been planned and developed.
The application deadlines can be viewed here: TBA
University Ethics Procedures and Guidelines
Before filling out the form, the applicant should carefully read the Research Code of
Practice and the Research Ethics Review Procedures.
Additionally, it is highly recommended to read the FAQs - L-Università ta Malta
provided by UREC. Sample information letters and consent forms, instructional
videos, a replica URECA Form and other resources can also be found on the UREC
Website. It is recommended that applicants make use of these resources when filling
in their URECA Form.
Please note that in rare cases, BEN FREC may need to consult with UREC or other
entities for advice before approving a form. In these cases, the process of approving
the form may take longer than usual. It is therefore recommended that applicants
submit their form as soon as possible, once they have established their methodology
and prepared their data collection instruments.
Filling In and Submitting the Form to BEN FREC
If the applicant is a student, while filling out the form the student may seek guidance
from their supervisor. The applicant should use their UM account to fill in the form,
and should input their supervisor’s UM email address. The supervisor will only be
able to view the form if their UM email address is inputted.
The URECA Form consists of three parts. In part 2 of the form, if an issue is flagged
a more detailed set of questions will appear. In this case, the applicant must then
provide further information. When an issue is flagged the form will guide the
applicant to submit for review. In the case that the form is submitted for review, the
applicant must NOT begin their research until FREC grants its approval.
Depending on the nature of the research, the applicant may also need to upload
supporting documents, such as interview questions and consent forms. Kindly
upload any supporting documents in PDF format. Students are not to use the UM
logo on their supporting documents unless they are working with Mater Dei.
If no issues are flagged, the form will guide the applicant to submit for records, and
the research can begin as soon as it is submitted. Applications submitted in records
may be used during audits.
Student’s submissions (for records and for review) can only be seen by FREC after
they have been endorsed by the student’s principal supervisor. All student
applications must be endorsed by the supervisor. Before endorsing the form, the
principal supervisor will check that the form and any supporting documents are
correctly filled in and no errors are present. Supervisors are responsible for the forms
they endorse, as per the Research Ethics Review Procedures.
If you need permission from a cooperating institution to carry out your research,
obtain permission before applying to FREC. and upload the email thread/letter in
which the institution grants permission with your application.
Following Submission
Once the student submits the form, the supervisor will be notified and will review the
form and any attached documents before endorsing it. The supervisor will be
automatically notified that they have a form to endorse. If the form is not up to
standard, the supervisor will provide feedback to the student.
FREC will only be able to view the form after it has been endorsed by the supervisor.
It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that their supervisor endorses the form.
If after submitting the URECA Form the applicant needs to make changes to the
research method, then the applicant will have to withdraw, update, and then resubmit
the form. For students, the form will need to be endorsed again. When re-submitting
the form, the applicant needs to include a note to FREC explaining what changes
have been made. If amendments have been made to any of the supporting
documents, the explanation should include which documents were amended.
Following FREC Review
When a form is sent back for revision by FREC, the requested amendments need to
be formatted as follows: In the form itself, any text to be added must be in ALL
CAPS, while any text to be deleted must be marked in square brackets [ ]. Any
changes to the supporting documents must be made with Track Changes and then
saved as PDF.
Important to Note
Violations of the research ethics and data protection procedures can result in
disciplinary action.
Researchers should not state that FREC or UREC have approved the study. UREC
instead asks that researchers use the following statement: 'This research is in
conformity with the University of Malta’s Research Code of Practice and Research
Ethics Review Procedures.' This statement covers both researchers who submit to
records and those who submit for review.
When submitting their dissertation/thesis, students will also need to submit the
Authenticity Form, on which they will need to write down the Application ID of their
URECA Form. There are two versions of the authenticity form, one without student
details and the other with student details. The authenticity form with student details
is not to be included in the dissertation due to GDPR. Instead, the authenticity form
WITHOUT student details is included in the dissertation.
The authenticity form WITHOUT student details can be accessed here:
https://www.um.edu.mt/media/um/docs/directorates/registrar/policiesproceduresguid
elinesandforms/forms/dissertationsubmissionall/Authenticityformwithoutstudentdetail
s(Postgraduate)-English.pdf
The authenticity form with student details can be accessed here:
https://www.um.edu.mt/media/um/docs/directorates/registrar/policiesproceduresguid
elinesandforms/forms/dissertationsubmissionall/Authenticityformwithstudentdetails(P
ostgraduate)-English.pdf
Contact BEN FREC
FREC can be contacted by email at research-ethics.ben@um.edu.mt
Below are the deadlines by which applications need to be submitted.
Kindly remember that FREC will not be able to view your application if it has not been endorsed by
your supervisor. Therefore, the application needs to be endorsed before the deadline.
Late submissions will be considered at the next month’s meeting.
2025
Monday 20th October
Friday 31st October
Wednesday 5th November
Monday 24th November
2026
Wednesday 7th January
Wednesday 14th January
Wednesday 4th February
Wednesday 18th February
Tuesday 17th March
Wednesday 15th April
Wednesday 20th May
Wednesday 17th June