Regulated Research Environment

If the data you want to work with might be restricted or sensitive, you will want to verify this before proceeding. 

Considerations for understanding and evaluating the nature of your research data: 

• Does the data contain Personally Identifiable Information (PII), such as names and addresses? 
• Is the data proprietary? 
• Does your research require a Data Use Agreement? 
• Is this human subject research? 

Unsure how to navigate this step? Our team can help you directly and if needed, identify other Cornell resources. Schedule a consultation or for quick questions, contact us at socialsciences@cornell.edu. 

If it is determined that your project requires securing the research data on the CCSS Regulated Research Environment, you will need a Data Use Agreement. The Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) will work with you and the data provider to develop and sign the Data Use Agreement for sponsored projects.

A CCSS Data Use Agreement is required for regulated researcher-collected and university-owned data. 

You can start either process by providing our team with the basic information about your project by filling out a New CCSS Project Request form.

An IRB approval is required for research involving human participants (which could include surveys, interviews, secondary analysis) in a way that meets the federal regulation’s definition of “human participant research.” The IRB website, Research with Human Participants | Cornell Research Services, is a detailed resource regarding all the requirements around the IRB review and application processes. If you have questions, contact IRB staff at irbhp@cornell.edu 

Either an Exemption Determination or copy of an approved IRB Protocol is required for the data use agreement process with OSP and for CCSS contract management. 

For sponsored projects, OSP will contact CCSS for the data security plan. The CCSS team will help you review the data security requirements and create the data protection plan for your application process.  

Note: For Cornell internal and researcher-created projects, the data security plan will be sent directly to the research team.  

With your finalized data use agreement in hand, our team will work with the data provider to deliver the data to the CCSS Regulated Research Environment. We will enable your access to the data, which includes access to your project space in a secure environment. User login credentials and instructions for access to the system will be provided. Staff will support you along the way until you are successfully connected to your project.  

You now have access to your restricted data and various statistical analysis software resources on CCSS’s restricted computing environment. As you start and continue your work, we are here to help.