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Clinical quality assurance associate education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a clinical quality assurance associate. Clinical quality assurance associates usually study biology, psychology, or business. 67% of clinical quality assurance associates hold a bachelor's degree, and 14% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 27 real clinical quality assurance associate resumes to see exactly what clinical quality assurance associate education sections show.

The most common colleges for clinical quality assurance associates are the California State University - San Bernardino and the California State University - San Bernardino.

There are also many online clinical quality assurance associate courses to help get the education required to be a clinical quality assurance associate.

What education do you need to become a clinical quality assurance associate?

What degree do you need to be a clinical quality assurance associate?

The most common degree for clinical quality assurance associates is bachelor's degree, with 67% of clinical quality assurance associates earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 14% and master's degree degree at 14%.
  • Bachelor's, 67%
  • Master's, 14%
  • Associate, 14%
  • Doctorate, 5%

What should I major in to become a clinical quality assurance associate?

You should major in biology to become a clinical quality assurance associate. 29% of clinical quality assurance associates major in biology. Other common majors for a clinical quality assurance associate include psychology and business.

Most common colleges for clinical quality assurance associates

Clinical quality assurance associates often get their degrees at California State University - San Bernardino, Saint Louis University, and Northwestern University. Here are the most common colleges for clinical quality assurance associates in the US based on their resumes.
Clinical quality assurance associate common collegePercentages
California State University - San Bernardino18.75%
Saint Louis University6.25%
Northwestern University6.25%
Loras College6.25%
New York University6.25%

Best majors for clinical quality assurance associates

RankMajorPercentages
1Biology29.2%
2Psychology12.5%
3Business8.3%
4Management4.2%
5Public Relations4.2%

Best colleges for clinical quality assurance associates

The best colleges for clinical quality assurance associates are University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, and Northwestern University.

A clinical quality assurance associate with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for clinical quality assurance associates. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become clinical quality assurance associates.

1. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

2. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

3. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

4. Duke University

Durham, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$55,695

Enrollment

6,596

5. Harvard University

Cambridge, MA • Private

In-state tuition

$50,420

Enrollment

7,582

6. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

In-state tuition

$53,740

Enrollment

5,567

7. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$59,430

Enrollment

8,216

8. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, MI • Private

In-state tuition

$15,262

Enrollment

30,079

9. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Enrollment

9,142

10. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

20 best online courses for clinical quality assurance associates

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1. Clinical Trials Data Management and Quality Assurance

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In this course, you’ll learn to collect and care for the data gathered during your trial and how to prevent mistakes and errors through quality assurance practices. Clinical trials generate an enormous amount of data, so you and your team must plan carefully by choosing the right collection instruments, systems, and measures to protect the integrity of your trial data. You’ll learn how to assemble, clean, and de-identify your datasets. Finally, you’ll learn to find and correct deficiencies...

2. Clinical Data Science

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Are you interested in how to use data generated by doctors, nurses, and the healthcare system to improve the care of future patients? If so, you may be a future clinical data scientist!\n\nThis specialization provides learners with hands on experience in use of electronic health records and informatics tools to perform clinical data science. This series of six courses is designed to augment learner’s existing skills in statistics and programming to provide examples of specific challenges,...

3. Good Clinical Practice ICH GCP for Clinical Research

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Certification on ICH GCP E6 R2 Good Clinical Practice for Clinical Research The Only Complete Course You Can Find Online...

4. Basic of Clinical Data Management

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4.5
(341)

Clinical Data Management...

5. Clinical Trials Operations

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This specialization is designed for individuals and teams that will be running or interacting with clinical trials. In four courses, learners will develop insights and build the skills they need to design, manage, and monitor clinical trials as well as analyze, document, and communicate the results. Learners will also learn best practices regarding ethics, safety, participant recruitment, regulatory compliance, and reporting standards. The core principles and skills of the specialization will...

6. Design and Conduct of Clinical Trials

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In this course, you’ll learn how to design and carry out clinical trials. Each design choice has implications for the quality and validity of your results. This course provides you and your team with essential skills to evaluate options, make good design choices, and implement them within your trial. You’ll learn to control for bias, randomize participants, mask treatments and outcomes, identify errors, develop and test hypotheses, and define appropriate outcomes. Finally, a trial without...

7. The Beginners Course for Clinical Research

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The Essentials of Clinical Trials - Clinical Research for Beginners...

8. Good Clinical Practice for Clinical Research Professionals

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The Complete, Certified ICH GCP (R2 & R3) Course for Investigators, Study Coordinators, Sponsors, Monitors and Study staff...

9. Introduction to Clinical Data Science

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This course will prepare you to complete all parts of the Clinical Data Science Specialization. In this course you will learn how clinical data are generated, the format of these data, and the ethical and legal restrictions on these data. You will also learn enough SQL and R programming skills to be able to complete the entire Specialization - even if you are a beginner programmer. While you are taking this course you will have access to an actual clinical data set and a free, online...

10. Making Data Science Work for Clinical Reporting

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This course is aimed to demonstate how principles and methods from data science can be applied in clinical reporting. By the end of the course, learners will understand what requirements there are in reporting clinical trials, and how they impact on how data science is used. The learner will see how they can work efficiently and effectively while still ensuring that they meet the needed standards...

11. The Simplest Guide to Clinical Trials Data Analysis with SAS

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4.4
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Step into the world of Pharmaceutical industry Clinical Trials Clinical Research Biostatistics Clinical SAS SAS...

12. Good Clinical Practice (GCP)

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4.2
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Key features of the GCP guideline, roles and responsibilities involved and the requirements of essential documentation...

13. Clinical Trials Analysis, Monitoring, and Presentation

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In this course, you’ll learn more advanced operational skills that you and your team need to run a successful clinical trial. You’ll learn about the computation of sample size and how to develop a sample size calculation that’s suitable for your trial design and outcome measures. You’ll also learn to use statistical methods to monitor your trial for safety, integrity, and efficacy. Next, you’ll learn how to report the results from your clinical trials through both journal articles and data...

14. Predictive Modeling and Transforming Clinical Practice

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This course teaches you the fundamentals of transforming clinical practice using predictive models. This course examines specific challenges and methods of clinical implementation, that clinical data scientists must be aware of when developing their predictive models...

15. Certificate Course in Clinical Research (CCCR)

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A Clinical Research Course-ICH-GCP E6(R2), Clinical Trials, Essential Documents, Sponsor, Investigator, Pharmaceuticals...

16. Clinical Research for beginners

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The Art of Publishing - Master Pub Med, Study design, Biostatistics, Journal choice, Manuscript writing & Referencing...

17. Clinical Natural Language Processing

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This course teaches you the fundamentals of clinical natural language processing (NLP). In this course you will learn the basic linguistic principals underlying NLP, as well as how to write regular expressions and handle text data in R. You will also learn practical techniques for text processing to be able to extract information from clinical notes. Finally, you will have a chance to put your skills to the test with a real-world practical application where you develop text processing...

18. Informed Clinical Decision Making using Deep Learning

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This specialisation is for learners with experience in programming that are interested in expanding their skills in applying deep learning in Electronic Health Records and with a focus on how to translate their models into Clinical Decision Support Systems.\n\nThe main areas that would explore are:\n\nData mining of Clinical Databases: Ethics, MIMIC III database, International Classification of Disease System and definition of common clinical outcomes. Deep learning in Electronic Health...

19. Understanding Clinical Research: Behind the Statistics

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If you’ve ever skipped over the results section of a medical paper because terms like “confidence interval” or “p-value” go over your head, then you’re in the right place. You may be a clinical practitioner reading research articles to keep up-to-date with developments in your field or a medical student wondering how to approach your own research. Greater confidence in understanding statistical analysis and the results can benefit both working professionals and those undertaking research...

20. Clinical Kidney, Pancreas and Islet Transplantation

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Kidney transplantation is a major advance of modern medicine which provides high-quality of life for patients with end-stage renal disease. What used to be an experimental, risky, and very limited treatment option more than 50 years ago is now routinely performed in many countries worldwide. The number of renal transplants is expected to rise sharply in the next decade since the proportion of patients with end stage renal disease is increasing. Are you interested in clinical kidney, pancreas...

Top 10 most affordable universities for clinical quality assurance associates

The most affordable schools for clinical quality assurance associates are University of Florida, california state university - bakersfield, and hunter college of the city university of new york.

If the best universities for clinical quality assurance associates are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for clinical quality assurance associates.

1. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

2. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

3. Hunter College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,182

Cost of attendance

13,998

4. University of South Florida

Tampa, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,410

Cost of attendance

20,456

5. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

6. Baruch College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,262

Cost of attendance

14,046

7. California State University - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,749

Cost of attendance

14,823

8. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

9. Lehman College of the City University of New York

Bronx, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,210

Cost of attendance

14,359

10. Florida International University

Miami, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,556

Cost of attendance

19,434

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for clinical quality assurance associates

The hardest universities for clinical quality assurance associates to get into are University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, and Northwestern University.

Some great schools for clinical quality assurance associates are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for clinical quality assurance associates based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,492

2. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

Admissions rate

4%

SAT average

1,497

3. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,508

4. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

6%

SAT average

1,512

5. Harvard University

Cambridge, MA • Private

Admissions rate

5%

SAT average

1,520

6. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

Admissions rate

11%

SAT average

1,513

7. Duke University

Durham, NC • Private

Admissions rate

9%

SAT average

1,516

8. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

9. Georgetown University

Washington, DC • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,456

10. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for clinical quality assurance associates

The easiest schools for clinical quality assurance associates to get into are D'Youville College, barry university, and mount saint mary's university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a clinical quality assurance associate without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for clinical quality assurance associates.

1. D'Youville College

Buffalo, NY • Private

Admissions rate

100%

SAT average

1,072

2. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

3. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

4. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

5. Notre Dame College

Cleveland, OH • Private

Admissions rate

90%

SAT average

994

6. Wayland Baptist University

Plainview, TX • Private

Admissions rate

98%

SAT average

1,003

7. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

8. University of the Incarnate Word

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

88%

SAT average

1,044

9. Our Lady of the Lake University

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

93%

SAT average

1,002

10. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

Average clinical quality assurance associate salary by education level

According to our data, clinical quality assurance associates with a Doctorate degree earn the highest average salary, at $92,255 annually. Clinical quality assurance associates with a Master's degree earn an average annual salary of $86,440.
Clinical quality assurance associate education levelClinical quality assurance associate salary
Master's Degree$86,440
High School Diploma or Less$61,823
Bachelor's Degree$77,393
Doctorate Degree$92,255
Some College/ Associate Degree$65,014

Clinical quality assurance associate education FAQs

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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