Ethical research practices are crucial to prevent research abuses and to improve the quality of scientific research. Application for ethical clearance is thus essential in protecting the University of Pretoria (UP), its faculties, and researchers from possible legal action.
To achieve these goals, all research projects (undergraduate, postgraduate, or studies by personnel and Postdoctoral applications) in the Faculty of Veterinary Science that involve research on animals, the use of animals for teaching purposes, human subjects in research, experimental (laboratory) research, and the use of internal or external data that may impact on man and animal must be reviewed by the Research Ethics Committee.
Kindly note that you may not proceed with the research project until ethical approval has been obtained. Please also note that no application will be reviewed after the submission deadline but will stand over until the next meeting.
The application for ethical clearance is fully online.
Online Application Instructions
How to get to the online application:
- Log in to the UP Portal via www.up.ac.za → MyTUKS Login (available for Staff, Students, and Guests).
- Find the “Research Grants & Ethics” section.
- Click on the Research Grants & Ethics link.
- On the homepage, click on the “Ethics Application & Approval” tile.
2025 Submission Deadlines and Meeting Dates
| REC Cut-off Date | REC Meeting Date |
|---|---|
| 2025/01/10 | 2025/01/28 |
| 2025/02/07 | 2025/02/25 |
| 2025/03/07 | 2025/03/25 |
| 2025/04/11 | 2025/05/06 |
| 2025/05/13 | 2025/05/27 |
| 2025/06/06 | 2025/06/24 |
| 2025/07/11 | 2025/07/29 |
| 2025/08/08 | 2025/08/26 |
| 2025/09/12 | 2025/09/30 |
| 2025/10/10 | 2025/10/28 |
| 2025/11/04 | 2025/11/18 |
Please also note: Ethical approval is granted for one year, after which applicants must apply for annual renewal.
Post-approval submissions, including ethics extensions and amendments to approved applications, should be submitted online via the ethics work centre.
All REC applications related to health research will be automatically rerouted to the Health Sciences Research Ethics Committee (HSREC); human research will be directed to the Humanities Research Ethics Committee, and all animal-related research will be routed to the Animal Ethics Committee once the applications meet the requirements for REC ethical clearance.
Faculty of Veterinary Science Research Ethics Committee
Committee member details are listed below:
| Surname and Initials | Email Address |
|---|---|
| Oosthuizen MC Prof (REC Chair) | [email protected] |
| Thompson PN Prof | [email protected] |
| Qekwana DN Prof | [email protected] |
| Snelling EP Prof | [email protected] |
| Hanekom JD Dr | [email protected] |
| Mokantla E Dr (Co-opted) | [email protected] |
| Mashitisho NHE (REC Co-ordinator) | [email protected] |
Please direct all correspondence to [email protected].
MORE INFORMATION on ethics in research is available on the website of the Animal Ethics Committee, a subcommittee of the Committee for Research Ethics and Integrity of the University of Pretoria.