Student & AP Research

Student Interview Consent Form

A free interview consent form for student projects, AP Research, oral history, and school-based interviews. Includes parent/guardian consent for interviewing minors. Download PDF or Word instantly.

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Student Interview Consent Form
Participant Name
Enter participant name above
Project Title
Enter project title above
Student Researcher
Enter student name above
School
Enter school name above
Supervising Teacher
Enter teacher name above

PURPOSE: I am a student at your school conducting a research project titled "your project."

VOLUNTARY: Participation is completely voluntary. You may withdraw at any time without penalty.

RECORDING: This interview will be audio and/or video recorded.

DATA USE: Your responses will be used in a class report / AP Research paper / oral history archive.

Participant Signature: _________________________ Date: ________
If participant is under 18:
Parent/Guardian Signature: ____________________ Date: ________
Student Researcher Signature: _________________ Date: ________

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Required Elements

What to Include in a Student Interview Consent Form

Student interview consent forms should be clear, concise, and jargon-free — written so any participant, including community members and family, can easily understand what they're agreeing to.

AP Research requirement: The College Board AP Research program requires students to complete an IRB-equivalent process for human subjects research, which includes obtaining signed informed interview consent forms before data collection. Consult your school's AP Research coordinator for institution-specific requirements.
Interviewing minors: When your participant is under 18, you need both a parental/guardian consent signature and the minor's own assent signature. This is required under 45 CFR Part 46 (the Common Rule) and most school ethics guidelines. See our participant interview consent form for a general-purpose version.
  • Student researcher name, school, and class
    Include the course name (AP Research, History, Sociology) and supervising teacher.
  • Project or assignment title and educational purpose
    Explain the project in one or two plain-language sentences. State it is for educational purposes only.
  • Description of the interview topics and duration
    Tell participants what subjects you will ask about and how long the interview will take.
  • Recording consent (audio / video / none)
    State clearly whether you will record and give the participant the option to decline recording. If recording for an oral history archive, include separate archival release language.
  • How interview data will be used
    Specify: class report, AP Research paper, school presentation, oral history archive, or journalism article.
  • Confidentiality or anonymization statement
    State whether the participant's name will be used, anonymized, or replaced with a pseudonym.
  • Voluntary participation and right to withdraw
    Must state participation is voluntary and the participant can stop or decline any question without consequence.
  • Parent/guardian signature line (for minors)
    Required whenever the participant is under 18. Both minor assent and adult consent are needed — parent signature alone is not sufficient if the minor is old enough to assent.
  • Student researcher contact information
    Include your email and supervising teacher's contact so participants can ask follow-up questions.
Step-by-Step Guide

How to Create a Student Interview Consent Form

Follow these five steps to write a student interview consent form that is clear, ethical, and meets your school's or AP Research program's requirements.

For a detailed guide covering all consent form types, see our full how to write an interview consent form guide. For a one-page version, see the simple interview consent form.

  1. State your student research project details

    Include your full name, school, supervising teacher, course name (e.g. AP Research, History), and project title at the top. This establishes your identity and the academic context. Research interview consent forms follow similar requirements.

  2. Describe the interview in plain, everyday language

    Explain what you will ask, how long it will take, and whether it will be recorded. Write at a level that any community member can understand — avoid academic jargon. The Student Press Law Center (SPLC) recommends all student interview consent forms be written in plain language accessible to participants of all backgrounds.

  3. Explain exactly how you will use the information

    State clearly: class report, AP Research paper, oral history archive, school newspaper, or presentation. Specify whether names will be used, anonymized, or replaced with pseudonyms. If the interview may be published or archived, add explicit publication consent language.

  4. Include a voluntary participation and rights statement

    State that participation is entirely voluntary, the participant can stop at any time, and there is no penalty for declining or withdrawing. This mirrors the requirements in the Belmont Report's principle of respect for persons, which AP Research ethics frameworks are based on.

  5. Add signature lines — including parent/guardian for minors

    Add fields for participant printed name, signature, and date. If interviewing anyone under 18, add a separate parent/guardian signature line. Both are required — see our participant interview consent form for the correct format. Your supervising teacher should also co-sign on formal academic projects.

Free Sample

Student Interview Consent Form — Sample Text

Copy and adapt the sample below. For a pre-filled editable version, use the download buttons.

STUDENT INTERVIEW CONSENT FORM

Student Researcher: [Your Full Name]
School: [School Name]
Course / Project: [e.g. AP Research / History 101 / Oral History Project]
Supervising Teacher: [Teacher Name] — [teacher@school.edu]
Project Title: [Project Title]
Date: [Date]

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

ABOUT THIS STUDENT RESEARCH PROJECT

I am a student at [School Name] conducting a [class project / AP Research
study / oral history project] about [topic]. This interview is for educational
purposes only and will be used in [class report / school presentation /
AP Research paper / oral history archive].

WHAT WILL HAPPEN

I will ask you [number] questions about [topic]. The interview will last
approximately [duration]. [The interview WILL / WILL NOT be recorded.
Any recordings will be used only for transcription and will not be shared
publicly without your additional written permission.]

HOW YOUR INFORMATION WILL BE USED

Your responses will appear in [describe final use]. [Your name WILL be used /
Your name WILL NOT be used — a pseudonym or "anonymous" will be used instead.]
Your information will not be shared outside this project.

YOUR RIGHTS

• You do not have to answer any question you are uncomfortable with
• You may stop the interview at any time with no consequence
• Your participation is entirely voluntary
• You may request that your responses be removed before the project is submitted

CONTACT INFORMATION

Student Researcher: [Your Email]
Supervising Teacher: [Teacher Name] — [Teacher Email/Phone]

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

CONSENT

I have read the above information and agree to participate.

Participant Name (print): _________________________ Date: ____________
Participant Signature:    _________________________

— — — — — — — FOR PARTICIPANTS UNDER 18 — — — — — — —

I am the parent/guardian of the above participant and consent to
their participation in this student research interview.

Parent/Guardian Name (print): ____________________ Date: ____________
Parent/Guardian Signature:    ____________________
Relationship to Participant:  ____________________

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

Student Researcher Signature: ____________________ Date: ____________
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Oral History & History Projects

Oral Interview Consent Form for History Projects

Oral history interviews require a slightly different consent form structure because recordings may be archived, published, or donated to a library collection. A standard interview consent form covers the basics, but oral history consent must also address long-term archival rights.

The Oral History Association (OHA) recommends that oral history consent forms explicitly state:

  • • Whether the recording may be deposited in an archive
  • • Whether the interview may be published or transcribed
  • • Whether the narrator retains the right to review or edit the transcript
  • • The specific repository where the recording will be stored
  • • Copyright ownership of the interview

For school oral history projects that involve recording, pair this form with a recording interview consent form for complete coverage. If the project involves video, see the video interview consent form.

AP Research & School IRB

AP Research Interview Consent Forms

AP Research students must complete a formal academic ethics review before conducting interviews. This process mirrors the IRB interview consent form process used in university research, but is reviewed internally by the school rather than an external IRB.

According to College Board AP Research guidelines, students conducting human-subjects research must:

  • • Obtain signed informed interview consent forms from all participants before beginning data collection
  • • Secure teacher/supervisor approval before any interviews begin
  • • Follow their school's institutional research ethics process
  • • Include the consent form as an appendix in their final Academic Paper

The research interview consent form is the appropriate base template for AP Research, adapted with student-specific language about educational purpose and school supervision.

FERPA note: If your AP Research project involves interviewing other students at your school and the responses could identify them, review FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) requirements with your teacher before distributing consent forms.
Related Forms

These forms are most commonly used alongside or instead of a student interview consent form, depending on your project type.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions — Student Interview Consent Forms

Yes. Any formal academic student project — including AP Research, oral history projects, sociology assignments, and school-based research — that involves interviewing people requires a signed consent form. Consent forms protect both the student interviewer and the participant, and are required by most school ethics guidelines and the informed consent standards upheld by the College Board and APA. Even informal student journalism interviews benefit from written consent per SPLC guidelines.
You need parent or guardian consent whenever you are interviewing someone under 18. The parent or guardian must sign in addition to — not instead of — the minor's own assent signature if they are of appropriate age. This applies to school journalism, AP Research, student documentary projects, and oral history assignments. For participants who are adults giving consent on behalf of a child (e.g., a parent consenting on behalf of a child going to a school counsellor interview), a separate adult authorization form is needed.
AP Research is a College Board Advanced Placement course where high school students conduct original year-long research. The program requires students to follow an IRB-equivalent ethics process for human subjects research, which includes obtaining signed informed interview consent forms from all participants before data collection. The consent form must be included as an appendix in the final AP Research Academic Paper. Our research interview consent form serves as the ideal base template for AP Research.
For very informal student projects, a verbal statement at the start of a recording — identifying yourself, your project, and confirming the participant's willingness — may be acceptable. However, written consent is always strongly preferred for AP Research, oral history archives, journalism, and any project submitted for academic credit or published. Check with your supervising teacher. For a fast one-page option, see the simple interview consent form.
Oral history interviews require a consent form that covers: the student researcher's name and school, the oral history project's purpose, how and where the recording will be stored, whether it may be placed in an archive, the participant's right to review the transcript, and whether their name will be identified or anonymized. Many oral history projects also use a separate recording interview consent form for audio/video release rights. The Oral History Association (OHA) publishes best-practice guidelines on consent for oral history research.