FB3 Ethics Advisory Group
Ethics Committee of Division 3
Faculty 3, in consultation with the Ethics Committee of the University of Bremen, has introduced a streamlined ethics review process for research projects involving minimal risk. The Ethics Subcommittee, elected by the Faculty Council, reviews the submitted brief applications and recommends approval to the Ethics Committee in cases involving minimal risk. This is based on the revised version of the University of Bremen’s Ethics Code, which was adopted on May 14, 2025.
Streamlined Application Process for Low-Risk Research Projects
The expedited review process was developed to reduce the workload of the University of Bremen’s Ethics Committee and allow it more time to review complex applications. As an increasing number of peer-reviewed journals and research funding agencies require a positive ethics approval even for ethically uncontroversial projects, the volume of applications has risen sharply.
The expedited procedure is available to researchers in Division 3 for research projects that are expected to pose at most a minimal risk to all participants but still require an ethics approval. The expedited procedure allows ethically unobjectionable research projects to be processed more quickly while maintaining ethical standards.
How to Submit a Short Application
To submit a short application, two requirements must be met: You must be affiliated with Department 3, and none of the exclusion criteria (Checklist 2.1. on the [Short Application Form]) may apply to your research project. For research projects conducted as part of theses in Department 3, only the respective advisors may submit applications (Ethics Code of the University of Bremen, §3, para. 4). Researchers from other departments may submit short applications to the departmental committee of their respective department (if available) or submit regular applications to the Ethics Committee. For projects to which any of the exclusion criteria apply, an application to the Ethics Committee is also required, as before.
Download the current version of the guidelines, the short application form, and the current version of the data protection checklist from the University of Bremen’s Legal Affairs Office (login to the internal area of the university website required). Fill out all documents, follow all steps in the guidelines, attach study information and questionnaires/instruments, combine all documents into a single PDF file (name: YYMMDD_Name.pdf), and send this file to ethikprotect me ?!fb3.uni-bremenprotect me ?!.de. We will make every effort to process your application promptly via the circulation procedure. If we have any brief questions, we may contact you by phone or email.
If you have any questions, please also contact ethikprotect me ?!fb3.uni-bremenprotect me ?!.de