COI Policies

Find links to relevant policies concerning conflict of interest at UC San Diego.

It is the policy of the University of California that its employees shall not engage in any activities that place them in a conflict of interest between their official duties and any other interest or obligation.

The University has comprehensive and interrelated policies and guidelines that address the conduct of employees, their interactions with private industry and conflict of interest. The policies work together to set high standards for employees, ensure the integrity of research results, and guide interactions of employees in their partnerships with industry and other university-related activities.

Generating new knowledge, through research, and translating that knowledge into applications that benefit society is an important mission of many major research universities, including UC San Diego.

The COI Office seeks to develop mechanisms to help employees maintain a reasonable balance between competing interests and identify and manage interests that may potentially bias research. Any real or perceived conflicts of interest must be reviewed and, where appropriate, managed, reduced, or eliminated as competing financial interests may undermine the public's trust in the objectivity of research, as objectivity is the fundamental basis of scientific discovery.

While the focus of conflict of interest considerations is the potential for personal financial gain, other relevant interests inherent in academia, including prestige, promotion, grants, and publications, can also exert influence over research activities.

Further detailed information can be found in the following documents:

• University of California Policy on Disclosure of Financial Interests and Management of Conflicts of Interest, National Science Foundation Awards
• UCSD PPM 200-13, Conflict of Interest, November 14, 1984
• Personnel Policy for Staff Members, Section 82, Conflict of Interest, July 14, 2016
• University of California Policy on Disclosure of Financial Interests and Management of Conflicts of Interest in Private Sponsors of Research, October 23, 2018
• University of California Policy on Disclosure of Financial Interests and Management of Conflicts of Interest Related to Sponsored Projects (revised 02/02/09)
• University of California Policy on Disclosure of Financial Interests & Management of Conflicts of Interest, Public Health Service Research Awards Policy (revised 06/17/2022)
• Academic Personnel Manual, Section APM-028-10, Guidelines for Disclosure and Review of Financial Interest in Private Sponsors of Research
• Conflict of Interest Policy and Compendium of Specialized University Policies, Guidelines, and Regulations Related to Conflict of Interest  (formerly UCOP Business and Finance Bulletin G-39)

Additional Resources:

• UCSD School of Medicine Office of Faculty Affairs
• UCOP Office of Research
• UC Conflict of Interest Awareness Campaign