groups » Training and Career Development » Ask the Experts: Research Careers Month - what questions do you have about careers in research?

April 2014 is RESEARCH CAREERS MONTH, and we are fortunate to have experts on hand to answer all your questions about pursuing a career in research, both in Industry and in academia. You can ask anything - how to create a good cover letter, the pros and cons of industry v academia for your career, how to move between the two, how to get training in one specific area, how to make a good impression in interview.... whatever you like.

About our Experts:
From Industry, we welcome expert Pauline Hope. Pauline is a Senior CRA from Research Pharmaceutical Services currently on assignment with Novartis Vaccine.
From Academia, we have Elizabeth Allen of the South African faculty, based at UCT: Elizabeth is a pharmacist by training, and has worked in clinical research since within the Pharmaceutical and contract research industries (UK and South Africa), as well as managing private and academic clinical trials and methodology research projects.
We also have Lesley Workman, a registered nurse and extremely experienced data manager and scientific coordinator.
You can read more about each of the experts on our 'Careers Month' page - and please feel free to ask any questions below:

Reply

careers job application

  • chaleg202003 Chalachew Misganaw 10 Apr 2014

    Thank you and I am again proud to be involved in Global Health Trials network. My concern is that the institution I am working for was evaluating clinical trial protocols made by researchers from developed countries.But, clinical trial protocols should also be developed by investigators from developing country to deal with their local problems.We were trying to design such and effective and affordable projects locally, however, the link between academia and industries is very week to create an enabling atmosphere for researchers to tap their potentials/ trials especially issues related to sponsorship. So, what can be done on this regard.Thank you

  • pharmacology Lesley Workman 9 Apr 2014

    @Karla Lam: Hi Karla, thanks for your question, I will give some background in the role of study coordinator from an academic perspective. In my personal experience clinical trial study coordinators are often registered nurses who have worked in clinical research studies for a few years as a "study nurse", or as part of the clinical team, recruiting participants, consenting, interviewing completing the study CRF/source documents and collecting of samples . A promotion would be to move from a study nurse to study co-coordinator. A basic health Science qualification EG. Bsc/other would also be suitable for this position. This is a demanding position and requires leadership qualities especially if it is a large study or intensive such as a phase one clinical trial. After a few years of study coordinator a more quality control position could be sought, such as monitoring and evaluation or working as a Clinical Research Associate in the Pharma Industry. Good luck and let me know if there are other things that might be helpful? Lesley

  • paulinehope Pauline Hope - Senior Contributor 9 Apr 2014

    @ Karla Lam: Thank you for your question. I'm not sure if you are reffering to a study coordinator position or whether you refer to a clinical operations manager. From an industry perspective, the study coordinators are the responsibility of the site to provide; in some instances the CRO may provide assistance to find a relevant study coordinator for the site, but they will be contracted to the site and not to the CRO. the study coordinator is responsible for assisting the site to complete queries/CRFs/any other relevant info. timeously. As it is a busy role, it is advisable to have a single study coordinator for each study, but in my experience this is never the case and hence they have a high workload. There is a lot of opportunity for such roles in industry studies. Other coordinator roles in industry include a CTA (clinical trial assistant), CTM (Clinical trial manager) and a COM (Clinical Operations manager).

  • Astrid_Erber Astrid Erber 8 Apr 2014

    Hello, I would be specifically interested in the interview process. What do you look for in a candidate during the interview? Could you give examples of typical questions that you ask? Thank you!

  • karla Karla Lam 8 Apr 2014

    Hi,
    Thank you very much Pauline, Elizabeth and Leslie. I would like to ask, what are the differences in career paths and opportunities which are offered within academia and industry as a clinical research trial coordinator?

  • paulinehope Pauline Hope - Senior Contributor 8 Apr 2014

    It is an honour to be on the panel for career month. I look forward to engaging with the young scientists of the future.

  • sreedharsmail sreedharsmail 3 Apr 2014

    There is lot of scope for Research in Ayurveda an ancient system of medicine in India.opportunity for young graduates to explore this field

  • echisupa Eric Chisupa 2 Apr 2014

    thanks for this opportunity, am looking forward to doing the course

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