Institutional Compliance Program

Blair Arch

Faculty, staff, and students who work on behalf of the University assume responsibility for conducting their operations within the law and in keeping with Princeton’s highest ethical standards.

At Princeton, many different departments are responsible for monitoring applicable laws so as to develop and maintain appropriate policies and communicate these policies and procedures to their constituents. While each of these departments operates as the institutional “expert” in laws and policies, it seemed prudent, given the rising standards for public accountability, for Princeton University to create an institutional compliance program whose mandate is to coordinate, monitor and, when appropriate, improve, the array of compliance functions.

What is Institutional Compliance?

The Institutional Compliance Program enables the University and its faculty, staff, and students to better manage the University’s operations and risks for which they are individually and collectively responsible by:  

  • Coordinating the University's compliance assurance activities (laws, regulations, contractual requirements);
  • Ensuring the institutional perspective is always present;
  • Assessing existing programs against the characteristics of "ideal" compliance programs, and improving as necessary;
  • Implementing "early warning" programs for emerging compliance issues;
  • Carrying out specific compliance support activities.

The Institutional Compliance Program carries this out by ensuring the institutional perspective is always present across the University and by following a model based on the federal elements of an effective compliance and ethics program (see § 8B2.1). 

This site includes a summary of the core principles of conduct that the University expects all faculty, staff, and students to understand and follow. In addition, references to relevant policies are provided. To help navigate through the myriad policies and external regulations, this site also features a comprehensive list of offices and the employees who are responsible for monitoring those laws and setting University policy, and communicating procedures and policies to faculty and staff.

A University Hotline is available to report non-compliance (anonymity optional) or to ask questions regarding compliance issues.