User guides and frequently asked questions about using Quest.

Access Quest Guide for Researchers: Online Human Ethics Application Forms

 

Troubleshooting accessing Quest

Most VU staff and students have access to Quest by default.

Log in using your regular staff or student ID (e.g. e1234567 or s7654321) and password.

If you are having trouble logging in, please try the following:

  • Ensure you are including the letter (e or s) in front of your ID.
  • If unsuccessful, refer to the Quest support section on this page to learn how to submit a ticket.
  • If you continue to experience difficulty, change your VU password via the MyVU Portal or contact the IT Service Desk on 03 9919 2777 to request a password reset.

Quest is available from any browser and in any location. You do not need to be connected to the VU network.

Make sure you are using the correct link: http://quest.vu.edu.au/ and that your browser is up to date.

Some issues may occur depending on your browser compatibility.

Although Quest is compatible with most browsers, some problems may occur with older versions (especially IE8 and IE10 which are no longer supported by Microsoft).

Download the most up to date version of your browser (we recommend Chrome and Firefox):

eForm queries

You might experience on the following issues with eForms.

Some sections of the eForm (e.g. adding investigators and entering a new comment) require you to save as you go using the green tick.

If you do not click the green tick before moving to the next page, you will lose the changes you have made to that section.

Within Quest, spellchecking is a function of your browser, rather than the Quest program.

Spellcheck currently works in Chrome and Firefox but not Safari.

You can use the report icon at any stage to generate a printer friendly version of the form. Select HTML to print to screen.

To save as a .pdf file to your computer select PDF then save a copy from the pop up screen (how to do this will depend on the PDF Reader you have installed).

Creating a printer friendly version of the application form requires the use of pop-ups.

Make sure pop-ups are enabled in your browser (changing this setting will be different for all browsers- check your browser's help guide).

While an online form is with the office or administrator for review, you will lose access to enter the eForm.

You can check the status of the eForm from the My Applications or My Progress Reviews page.

Ethics applications issues

Most students and some external personnel already exist in the Quest database.

If you cannot find someone in the system to add to your application, you can submit a VU Support Hub ticket requesting that they be added to Quest. Please refer to the Quest support section on this page to learn how to submit a ticket.

Only VU staff and students have access to log in to Quest.

To share your online application externally, you can save or print a copy of it by clicking the report icon.

Then you may email the saved document.

Approval from the head of a College/School (or equivalent) for submission of ethics applications is no longer required.

Using Quest, it is not necessary to 'submit' your online ethics application to your supervisor.

Once you have listed them in the Investigator Details page using their correct personnel record, your supervisor will be able to view and edit the application in Quest.

It is the responsibility of the Primary Chief Investigator to submit an ethics application.

Only the personnel marked as Chief Investigator will be able to see the Action tab.

This tab contains the options to submit and delete your application.

To withdraw your application you must contact the Secretary for the Human Research Ethics Committee.

There may be stages throughout the application process in which the Ethics Secretary will instruct you to amend your application form. These amendments will be communicated to you via 'Comments' within the eForm.

A General Comment will appear as a blue flag. General comments are used to make notes or observations about the application. You do not need to respond directly to a general comment, but the comment may help inform you as to how to improve your application overall.

An Action Comment will appear first as a red flag. The red flag indicates that you are required to amend questions in your application in order to proceed with the ethics process.

View all comments: To generate a list of all comments created within your application, click the report icon. Select Comments Report from the Document drop-down field and click OK.

Create a comment: To create a comment, open the relevant page then click the Page Comments icon and click New Comment. Remember to click the green tick at the bottom of the table to save.

In order to resubmit your application, ensure you have completed the following steps:

  1. generate a comments report
  2. view individual page comments
  3. make all changes to the form answers
  4. enter your response in a new comment
  5. mark all action comments as responded

The system will not allow you to resubmit unless you have marked all Action Comments (red flags) as responded. For more detail about this process, refer to the Ethics Quick Start Guide.

Quest support

For technical enquiries and assistance, please submit a ticket through the VU Support Hub.

Submitting a ticket

  1. Visit the VU Support Hub (login required).
  2. Click on the 'Research' tile (scroll down to access).
  3. Click 'Submit a new ticket'.
  4. Select an item from the Service Catalog.
  5. Enter the details of your request.
  6. Click 'Review & Submit', then click 'Submit'.