I am pleased to announce that RATS, the online system used by the Animal Research Committee (ARC), will undergo a major update this coming weekend. As a result, RATS will be unavailable from 3:00 PM on Friday, September 1, 2023, until 11:59 PM on Monday, September 4, 2023.
The RATS update is intended to refresh the appearance of the system and improve navigation; it does not significantly impact the functionality or the processes by which your submissions are reviewed. A summary of changes is available here. In addition, we have prepared a series of instruction guides to help you with routine activities, such as assigning a PI proxy and creating an application. These guides will be available in the RATS Help Center after the update.
An additional change that will be included with this update pertains to the reviewer notes that appear within the protocol SmartForm, conveying questions and comments from your ARC reviewers. In the current release of RATS, reviewer comments appear at the top of each page. After the update, reviewers will be able to add comments at the individual question level.
We anticipate that some users will need training after the update. The ARC administrative team is available for weekly training sessions and office hours for more targeted inquires.
September Training
Friday, Sept 8th, 10am-11am
Wed, Sept 13th, 1pm-2pm
Mon, Sept 18th, 12pm-1pm
Wed, Sept 27th, 1pm-2pm
Please email RATSHelp@research.ucla.edu to register for training.
Office Hours
Every Wednesday from 11am-12pm
Join Zoom Meeting
https://ucla.zoom.us/j/91828882827?pwd=bTF2blFtK3NKalVQbzZLRk9nOVFGUT09
Meeting ID: 918 2888 2827
Passcode: 439593
The current version of RATS was launched in 2020. Since then, we have made updates to clarify processes and address bugs as they have been identified. With each update – in particular, with the coming release – our goal is to provide an efficient system for managing your ARC submissions. We welcome your feedback.