UG Dissertations: Ethics Approval
Every LUBS undergraduate dissertation requires Ethics Approval. This is the single, non-negotiable step you must complete before collecting any data to safeguard your research and avoid major penalties to your final mark. This page explains the entire process, so you can get started with confidence.
Important: every dissertation requires approval
Every LUBS undergraduate dissertation student must complete the appropriate ethics approval process and include evidence of approval in their final dissertation.
- If you are collecting primary data: you must receive approval before you begin collecting it.
- If you are using secondary data: you must agree your intended sources with your supervisor, complete the secondary-data application and make sure that all data are lawfully accessed and used.
- If you are using both: you must complete separate primary-data and secondary-data applications.
Read this page carefully to understand which route applies to your project, what you need to submit and when you need to do it.
You can also download a basic text version of this page:
Start here: which route applies to you?
Every LUBS undergraduate dissertation requires approval, but the process you need to follow depends first on whether your project is covered by your module’s block approval.
Most undergraduate dissertation projects are covered by block approval and can use the standard LUBS Ethics Application process explained on this page. Some projects fall outside block approval and require a separate, full institutional ethics review.
If your project can use the standard process, the application route you follow will then depend on the data you intend to use.
Block approval and your project
The first step is to check if your project is within your module’s block approval. This determines whether you can follow the standard LUBS application process.
When is a project outside block approval?
Some projects may involve greater risk or complexity through the data collection they require, for example include any projects involving the NHS or people classed as vulnerable.
If you think this may apply to your project, you must discuss it with both your module leader and your dissertation supervisor. You need the agreement of both before the project can proceed.
Be organised if you are outside block approval!
A full institutional ethics review can take more than two months.
Begin the process before the Christmas break and submit the full application through the Phoenix system no later than the last day of teaching in semester one.
You must not begin any research activity covered by the full application until approval has been granted.
Project is within block approval
This is the usual route for undergraduate dissertation projects.
Action: Read the information below and choose your data route, then complete the correct parts of the LUBS Ethics Application form.
Your submission will be sent to your supervisor for review. If your supervisor asks you to make changes, update your application and submit it again through the same online form.
Route 1: primary-data dissertations
Primary data are data you collect specifically for your dissertation. Examples include interviews, focus groups, surveys, experiments, observation and similar research methods.
Discuss your project and proposed data-collection materials with your supervisor before submitting your application. Your supervisor needs to understand your project and review the materials you intend to use.
You will also need to understand which documents you must include when you submit your ethics form:
If you are using qualitative methods
In addition to the primary-data application form linked above, you must provide the following documents with your ethics form submission:
- A participant information sheet or appropriate alternative, such as an invitation email.
- An informed consent form.
- Your interview questions, focus-group questions or equivalent data-collection materials
If you are using quantitative methods
You will need to provide the following documents with your ethics form submission:
- A participant information sheet or appropriate alternative, such as an invitation email or LinkedIn post.
- Your survey questionnaire, including informed consent within its design.
If you are using another type of primary-data research, provide the equivalent recruitment, participant-information, consent and data-collection materials needed for your method.
Participant Information Sheets and Consent Form templates with guidance are available from the Governance and Compliance Directorate site:
Checklist: complete the primary-data route for a project
- Discuss your project and data-collection materials with your supervisor.
- Complete the LUBS Internal Research Ethics Application Form for Taught Students.
- Open the LUBS Ethics Application and select the primary-data route.
- Select your supervisor and upload the completed internal application form and all relevant supporting materials.
- Submit everything at least two weeks before you intend to begin collecting primary data.
- If your supervisor rejects the application with comments, make the requested changes and submit it again through the same online form.
- Wait until you receive the automated approval email before beginning primary data collection.
- Keep the automated approval email. You must append it to your final dissertation.
Route 2: secondary-data dissertations
Secondary data are existing data that you did not collect specifically for your dissertation. They may come from databases, public datasets, company records, archives, reports and other existing sources.
You may need to examine possible secondary-data sources before you can decide whether they are suitable for your project. You may carry out reasonable preliminary exploration for this purpose before your application is approved.
Action: once you have identified the sources you intend to use, discuss and agree them with your supervisor and complete the secondary-data route.
Important: your secondary data must be lawfully obtained
You must be able to show where your data came from and that you are entitled to access and use them.
You may use data where:
- access is provided through an authorised University subscription, genuine open or public source, or another valid licence or permission;
- you follow the relevant licence conditions, terms of use, confidentiality requirements and access restrictions; and
- you can explain and evidence the source of the data to your supervisor.
Do not use shared or stolen login details, bypass access restrictions, or obtain data through unlawful or unverifiable sources.
If the University does not subscribe to a database, you must have another lawful entitlement to access and use it.
Do not use a source if its legitimacy or origin cannot be verified.
Checklist to complete the secondary-data route for a project
- Explore possible sources only as much as needed to decide whether they are suitable for your project.
- Identify the databases, sources and, where known, datasets you intend to use.
- Discuss the proposed sources with your supervisor and obtain their agreement to proceed with the application.
- Open the LUBS Ethics Application and select the secondary-data route.
- Select your supervisor, provide the requested information about your topic and sources, and complete the lawful-source declaration.
- If your supervisor rejects the application with comments, make the requested changes and submit it again through the same online form.
- When your application is approved, keep the automated approval email.
- Append the automated approval email to your final dissertation.
When you are ready to submit your LUBS Ethics Application
The form requires you to sign in using your standard University IT account. If you have difficulty accessing it on an Android or iOS device, try using Microsoft Edge on a Windows laptop or desktop computer.
Before opening the application, make sure you have:
- Your student ID number.
- Your dissertation module code.
- The name of your assigned supervisor.
- An understanding of whether you are using primary data, secondary data, or both.
- All forms and supporting materials required for your route.
When you are ready to submit, click the button below. Further down this page you can watch a video guide to completing the main form, and read important information about deadlines and penalties.
Submitting your ethics application: video guide
Watch this short video for an overview of the online application process. Make sure you also follow the written instructions on this page for your data route.
Deadlines: when to submit
Do not leave your application until the last minute. Your supervisor may ask you to revise your submission before it can be approved.
Primary-data projects
Submit your application at least two weeks before you intend to begin collecting primary data.
The recommended latest time to obtain approval is before the start of the Easter break. You should therefore submit at least two weeks before the final Friday of teaching preceding the Easter break.
Applications submitted later may be delayed by University closures and holidays. You must not begin collecting primary data while waiting for approval.
Secondary-data projects
Submit your application promptly after agreeing your proposed data sources with your supervisor. Allow at least two weeks for review and possible resubmission.
The recommended latest submission point is two weeks before the final Friday of teaching preceding the Easter break.
You may continue reasonable preliminary exploration while waiting for approval, but you remain responsible for lawful access and use at all times.
Projects requiring full institutional review
Begin the process before the Christmas break and submit the application through Phoenix no later than the last day of teaching in semester one. Full institutional review can take more than two months.
Keep the automated approval email that you receive when your supervisor approves your application.
You must append that email to your final dissertation as evidence that you completed the required approval process. If you completed separate primary and secondary applications, append the approval email for each application.
Penalties for not following the rules
Ethics and lawful data use are serious requirements. The penalties differ depending on whether you are following the primary-data or secondary-data route.
A mark deduction described below as not creating a fail will not reduce an otherwise passing written-dissertation mark below 40%.
Primary-data penalties
| Approval status | Dissertation penalty |
|---|---|
| Approval obtained before data collection, but the automated approval email is not appended to the dissertation | 5-mark deduction from the written dissertation. The deduction cannot create a fail. |
| Approval obtained after primary data collection started, and the automated approval email is appended | 10-mark deduction from the written dissertation. The deduction cannot create a fail. |
| Approval obtained after primary data collection started, and the automated approval email is not appended | 15-mark deduction from the written dissertation. The deduction cannot create a fail. |
| No ethics approval obtained | Written-dissertation mark capped at 40%. |
Secondary-data penalties
| Approval status | Dissertation penalty |
|---|---|
| Approval obtained, but the automated approval email is not appended to the dissertation | 5-mark deduction from the written dissertation. The deduction cannot create a fail. |
| No ethics approval obtained | Written-dissertation mark capped at 40%. |
Academic Integrity
Serious breaches of the University's expectations for ethical research may be referred to the Academic Integrity Team for investigation.
This includes using secondary data that you cannot demonstrate were lawfully obtained.
An Academic Integrity referral is separate from the dissertation mark penalties shown above.
If your project changes
Tell your supervisor if your project changes after approval.
This includes changes to your topic, research method, intended participants or secondary-data sources.
Your supervisor will advise whether your existing approval still covers the project or whether you need to submit a new application.
Final checklist
Knowledge without integrity is dangerous and dreadful