IUPUI offers new graduate program in international research ethics

Students seeking a master's degree in philosophy at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis can select a new offering that will expose them to the growing field of international research ethics.

A "Concentration in International Research Ethics" will be offered by the Department of Philosophy in the IU School of Liberal Arts at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolisand the Indiana Center for Bioethics.

The new program was funded by a $940,000 grant the Center for Bioethics received from Fogarty International Center at the National Institutes of Health. The curriculum involves a mix of coursework, and an innovative practicum experience in Kenya. A parallel master's degree program is being developed at Moi University which will integrate with the IUPUI program.

The new graduate program is part of the Indiana University-Moi University Academic Research Ethics Partnership, a major teaching and curriculum development program involving the IU Center for Bioethics and Moi University in Eldoret, Kenya. The program builds on a 20-year relationship between the IU and Moi medical schools which began as a way to provide training to medical students and health-care providers from both universities.

"The new program in international research ethics is an exciting addition to the training and education opportunities in bioethics at IUPUI," said Eric M. Meslin, Ph.D., director of the IU Center for Bioethics and program director of the IU-Moi Academic Research Ethics Partnership.

"By offering professional and graduate students the chance to study in-depth the ethical and policy issues surrounding research in the international arena, we will be helping to build valuable bioethics capacity here in Indiana and in other countries, beginning with our partners in Kenya," Meslin said.

The new program is designed to be completed in four semesters of full-time study, but part-time students are welcome to apply. A web site will soon be available with details regarding curriculum structure, course descriptions, program faculty and admission requirements.