Researchers

Setting up your study

Once your operations plan is agreed, study setup happens in two parts: the document vault, and the study configuration. Everything stays in draft — and fully editable — until launch.

Document vault setup

Every study on Biome has a document vault: a secure store for the study's governing documents with clearance-based access. Before your study can launch, the vault must contain:

  • Your IRB or ethics approval — uploaded by you; Biome verifies it is on file before launch
  • Your study protocol
  • The Biome service agreement and data processing agreement — e-signed directly in the vault
  • Consent forms — uploaded and version-managed by you; research partners e-sign them during application

Biome does not provide or obtain IRB or ethics approval, and listing a study on Biome does not constitute ethical review. The approval you upload comes from your institution or an independent board. Biome's role is to store it securely and confirm it is on file.

Vault access is clearance-based: you control which team members can view or manage each document. Signed consent records are retained with the study and included in the final compliance export.

Study configuration

With the vault in place, configure the study itself. The setup form includes the following sections:

Study basics

  • Title
  • Category (Microbiome, Nutrition, Sleep, Wearables, Longevity, Quantified-self)
  • Study type (Observational, Interventional, Survey-only, Self-experiment)
  • Description
  • Duration in weeks
  • Region (or "Remote / Global")
  • Task summary (one-line description of what research partners do, max 80 characters)

Compensation schedule

  • Compensation per research partner, paid on completion or staged across milestones
  • Number of cohort slots
  • Total compensation budget (auto-calculated) — deposited upfront and held by Biome before launch

Screening criteria

  • Inclusion criteria
  • Exclusion criteria
  • Age range (minimum and maximum)
  • Optional screening questionnaire (up to 10 yes/no questions)

Weekly milestones

Based on the study duration, the form generates week sections. For each week, you define milestones:

  • Milestone title (e.g., "Complete baseline survey")
  • Type: research partner self-reports, or your team confirms
  • Optional description
  • Linked sample kit, if the milestone involves a sample (kit dispatch and return are tracked automatically)

You should define 3–8 milestones total depending on study length.

Compliance threshold

  • The share of milestones a research partner must have verified to be eligible for compensation
  • Set during study setup, shown to applicants before they apply

Draft studies are saved but not visible to research partners. You can return to edit them at any time from your researcher dashboard.