Research misconduct undermines the integrity of science and can have serious consequences for funding, institutional reputation, and public trust. Universities receiving federal research funding must maintain robust systems for reporting and investigating allegations of research misconduct in compliance with NIH, NSF, and other federal agency guidelines.

This University Research Misconduct Confidential Report template provides a secure, structured way for faculty, staff, students, and collaborators to report concerns about research integrity. The form covers fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, improper authorship, conflicts of interest, and violations of human subjects or animal welfare regulations—all core areas outlined in federal research misconduct policies.

Built with Paperform, this template allows your institution to collect detailed, organized reports that can be routed directly to your Research Integrity Officer, IRB chair, or compliance committee. You can customize the form to match your institution's specific procedures, add conditional logic to gather relevant details based on the type of misconduct alleged, and maintain detailed audit trails for federal reporting requirements.

The form supports both identified and anonymous reporting, recognizing that whistleblowers may fear retaliation. You can use Papersign (papersign.com) to handle formal affidavits or witness statements later in the investigation process, and Stepper (stepper.io) to automate case tracking workflows—routing reports to the appropriate oversight committee, triggering acknowledgment emails, creating investigation timelines, and syncing with case management systems.

For research institutions, medical schools, teaching hospitals, and academic health centers, this template helps you meet federal compliance obligations while protecting reporters and maintaining the confidentiality required during preliminary assessments and formal investigations.