Qualtrics Policy

Qualtrics is Northeastern’s supported survey tool

Qualtrics is available to all current Northeastern faculty, staff, and students, when supervised by faculty in a class or research setting.

Please read the terms below and contact the department(s) necessary for approval (if needed) before creating a survey.

Northeastern University reserves the right to change, at any time, and at its sole discretion, this survey service and these Terms of Use.

Follow Appropriate Use Policy – Use of Qualtrics survey is in accordance with the Northeastern Appropriate Use Policy of Computer And Network Resources.
Survey Use – The Qualtrics service should not be used for personal or commercial gain.
Northeastern Affiliation – When sending surveys, Qualtrics users shall ensure that affiliation is stated accurately. Individuals or groups shall not claim to officially represent the University itself in an official capacity.
Northeastern Brand – Refer to Northeastern University’s guidelines on logo use.
Compliance with all other Laws and Policies – Surveys must comply with all other applicable University policies and state and federal laws, including the federal laws for copyright and privacy.
Human Subject Research must follow Institutional Review Board (IRB) policy and be approved by an IRB unless it meets the exempt criteria. See Classroom Research and NU Administrative Surveys guidelines.
Survey Data – Qualtrics users are responsible for downloading and securing all survey data in conformity with Northeastern’s guidelines and standards for handling sensitive information. The information is outlined but not limited to the Appropriate Use Policy of Computer And Network Resources. Survey participants should be informed that their survey data will be stored on a third party server and that, while the third party has agreed to keep the data confidential, Northeastern University does not control the security of that server.
Protecting Privacy – All surveys must protect the privacy and confidentiality of student, employee and other institutional information, as required by FERPA (privacy of student information), appropriate state laws, and Northeastern policies. Although a closed group of participants may complete Qualtrics surveys without the individuals explicitly having to identify themselves, the Qualtrics software stores identifying information in its databases. Consequently, Qualtrics cannot be used with absolute guarantees of anonymity for your participants. For additional information on FERPA and related university practices and procedures, visit the Office of the University Registrar’s Guidelines for Student Data Usage webpage. To learn more about Northeastern’s commitment to protecting privacy, read the Online Privacy Statement.
Leaving Northeastern – When leaving Northeastern, the manager of employee or employee will need to contact Northeastern Qualtrics administrators to transfer any relevant Qualtrics content to another institutional account, after which Northeastern will close the Qualtrics account for the person no longer affiliated with the university and delete all surveys and results.

Policies and Laws

Northeastern University is committed to the ethical conduct of research, and strives to adhere to the highest ethical standards for the protection of human subjects, consistent with the principles of the Nuremberg Code and the Belmont Report. Policies, Procedures, and Guidelines can be found on the Human Subject Research Protection website.

Policy on Human Subject – Qualtrics users are responsible for following Northeastern University Institutional Review Board (IRB) policy. All human participant research conducted by Northeastern University investigators, students, and staff, and any others conducting research at Northeastern or utilizing Northeastern resources, must seek prior approval of IRB or meet the exemption criteria of classroom or administrative surveys. Information regarding approval procedures and other necessary guidelines for human research at the University are found at the HSRP website, in HSRP Manual. Investigators are responsible for adhering to the guidelines provided, and should read the Policies and Procedures prior to submitting an application for review. Faculty who will be Principal Investigators on classroom research projects must complete training. Additional information can found at the Human Subject Protection Training website.
Policy on Classroom Research – Qualtrics users are responsible for following Northeastern University Classroom Research Policy.
Human Subject Research Federal Regulations and Guidance – Qualtrics users must follow Federal Regulations and Guidance.
Compliance with all other Laws and Policies – Surveys must comply with all other applicable University policies and state and federal laws, including the federal laws for copyright and privacy. The survey service may not be used for personal or commercial gain. Unsolicited mass communication may not be delivered in conjunction with the survey service. Qualtrics should not be used to store or process high-risk, confidential information as defined by Northeastern University policy and federal law.

Additional Information on Human Subject Research Protection
For information about human subjects research and the procedures for applying for IRB review, visit the HSRP website or call (617) 373-4588. Research participants with questions may contact HSRP via telephone at (617) 373-4588, or via email at n.regina@northeastern.edu.

Survey Guidelines

Northeastern may revoke user access to Qualtrics at any time for failure to abide by the Terms of use and Policies.

Survey Participation – Survey participation must be free from coercion. Survey author(s) must notify the participants that their participation is voluntary and they are free to opt out of their research study or survey without penalty.
Survey Disclosure – If identifying information needs to be collected, the survey author must explicitly request such as an item on the survey, so as to not give the impression that the survey is anonymous.
Results Distribution – Respondents should be informed if the data or survey results will be published or distributed, including whether individual responses will appear in the published results.
Survey Contact Person – The survey questionnaire must include “contact information” (name, email address, telephone number) should the respondents have any questions about the content of the form or about the use and/or publication of survey results.
Survey Distribution – Due to the high volume of surveys administered at Northeastern, it is prohibited to distribute surveys via mass outlets such as blast emails and MyNEU portal.