agrh - ethics is driving me crazy. I am in a computing department and they have rejected my ethics form because i am working with minors - they dont know how to deal with that. My CRB is out of date - so i need my insitution to request one for me - but thtey said i have to do it myself. But i cant do it myself as an institution have to do it for you. What can i do - if this was the school of education then it would have gone through and they would have sorted out a crb. I am stuck.....

It sounds as if your institution is letting you down by not providing the appropriate support for yout research.

They obviously don't know how the CRB system works if they are telling you to apply for a CRB check yourself - surely they would be more helpful if you make it clear that you need a CRB check to continue your research?

If this doesn't work you could try going through another department to get a CRB check (such as human resources), rather than through the computing department and your supervisor.

Driven...

Do you part-time lecture at any uni? If so, you would need a CRB for this (and if you haven't got an up-to-date one, this is an error on the uni's part, and you are - strictly speaking - working illegally).

By pass your department, and go and speak to someone in the graduate school. If you need a CRB to undertake fieldwork, your uni must assist you with this!