Research Security: Training
Research security training is mandated for individuals involved in federally funded research by U.S. federal regulations such as the CHIPS Act of 2022 and National Security Presidential Memorandum 33 (NSPM-33).
Overview
As required by the CHIPS Act of 2022, all federal agencies are implementing a Research Security training requirement for Senior Personnel. On May 1, 2025, the U.S. Department of Energy became the first agency to implement this requirement for its proposals, with the USDA, NSF and others quickly following. See the table below for other agency implementation dates. To ensure NC State researchers are familiar with Research Security requirements — and to keep the university well-positioned to deal with evolving requirements — effective for proposals submitted on or after Oct. 15, 2025, all principal investigators and other named senior personnel listed on proposals are required to have completed Research Security training prior to the submission of the proposal.
Regulatory Context
- The CHIPS and Science Act (42 U.S.C. § 19234) codifies a RS training requirement introduced in National Security Presidential Memorandum-33.
- NC State’s Research Security course has been designed to meet the requirements of federal agencies, including but not limited to:
Who is Required to Complete the Training?
- As of Oct. 15, 2025, all Senior Personnel listed on any NC State proposal must have completed Research Security training within the last 12 months prior to the submission of the proposal.
- Individuals on federally funded projects that include this requirement in the terms and conditions of the award.
- As of Oct. 25, 2025 NSF requires that the required Responsible Conduct if Research (RCR) course include Research Security. NC State’s CITI RCR course will be modified before that date to include a Research Security Module. Please visit Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) Training for more information.
How can the course be accessed?
- Completion of the National Science Foundation Research Security modules will also satisfy this requirement. Those modules are available on at Research Security Training | NSF. To receive credit for the NSF course, submit the competition certificate to researchsecurity@ncsu.edu
- The NC State Research Security course can be accessed in REPORTER. The course is scenario-based and can be completed in 30 minutes.
- Information on how to access the CITI RCR course can be found at RCR Courses.
Other Security Training
For NC State Personnel engaging in controlled research, visit Export Controls: Training for training requirements.
Agency Implementation Dates
| Agency | Implementation Date |
|---|---|
Department of Energy | May 1, 2025 |
National Science Foundation | Oct. 10, 2025 |
Department of Defense | TBA |
National Institutes of Health | Jan. 25, 2026 |
U.S. Department of Agriculture | Aug. 1, 2025 |