Where to submit documents for multi-site studies

Applies to: Multi-site studies in Huron
Last reviewed: 09/01/2026 by Office of Responsible Research Practices

Multi-site studies have three places documents can go.

Before you start: Approval of a study-wide template does not constitute approval of an Ohio State-specific version unless the Ohio State version has also been submitted and approved.

The three destinations

Study-Related Documents

Submit documents that are intended for use across all sites and are not specific to Ohio State, including:

• Consent and assent templates
• Recruitment templates
• Study-wide participant materials
• Surveys and questionnaires
• Data collection forms
• Diaries, logs, worksheets, and other study tools

If a document can be used by multiple sites with site-specific information added later, it generally belongs on the Study-Related Documents page.

Local Site Documents (parent study)

Submit documents that are specific to Ohio State, such as:

• Ohio State consent forms
• Ohio State recruitment materials
• Ohio State participant-facing documents
• Materials containing Ohio State personnel, contact information, locations, or local language

These documents may also serve as examples or templates for participating sites to create their own site-specific versions.

The Local Site Documents page of the parent study should only contain documents approved for Ohio State's use.

Two acceptable approaches

Option 1: separate template and Ohio State version

• Study-Related Documents: study-wide template or templates
• Local Site Documents (parent study): Ohio State-specific version or versions
• Participating Site Submission: the participating site's local version or versions

Option 2: the Ohio State version serves as the template

• Study-Related Documents: no separate template submitted
• Local Site Documents (parent study): Ohio State-specific version that also serves as the model for participating sites
• Participating Site Submission: the participating site's local version or versions

Checklist before you upload

Before uploading a document, ask:

Does it belong in Study-Related Documents?

• Not specific to Ohio State
• Intended for study-wide use
• Can be adapted by multiple sites

Does it belong in Local Site Documents (parent study)?

• Specific to Ohio State
• Contains Ohio State contacts, personnel, locations, or local language
• Intended for use at the Ohio State site

Does it belong in a Participating Site Submission?

• Specific to the participating site
• Contains that site's contacts, personnel, locations, or local language
• Will be used at that participating site

Common error to avoid

Submitting a study-wide template as an Ohio State Local Site Document. If the document is not specific to Ohio State, it should generally be submitted on the Study-Related Documents page. Approval of a study-wide template does not constitute approval of an Ohio State-specific version unless the Ohio State version has also been submitted and approved.