How To Become A Clinical Research Administrator: What It Is and Career Path

What is a clinical research administrator and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

The average clinical research administrator salary is $58,047. The most common degree is a bachelor's degree degree with an business major. It usually takes 1-2 years of experience to become a clinical research administrator. Clinical research administrators with a Certified Clinical Research Professional (CCRP) certification earn more money. Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 6% and produce 4,600 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreClinical Research AdministratorUS Average

Salary

4.5

Avg. Salary $58,047

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.6

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.51%

Asian 10.37%

Black or African American 2.59%

Hispanic or Latino 15.34%

Unknown 7.60%

White 63.59%

Gender

female 70.77%

male 29.23%

Age - 43.5

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 43.5

Stress level

5.6

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.5

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.3

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a clinical research administrator

Explore clinical research administrator education requirements

Most common clinical research administrator degrees

Bachelor's

51.9 %

Master's

28.3 %

Doctorate

10.4 %

Start to develop specific clinical research administrator skills

Skills	Percentages
IRB	16.74%
Clinical Research Studies	10.70%
Informed Consent	9.35%
Principal Investigators	8.66%
HIPAA	8.41%

Complete relevant clinical research administrator training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New clinical research administrators learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a clinical research administrator based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real clinical research administrator resumes.

Research clinical research administrator duties and responsibilities

Manage regional academic and community base oncology practices as the primary contact for all communications and support.
Ensure effective data management and the following of good clinical practice (GCP) guidelines.
Initiate the development of standard operating procedures for regulatory compliance monitoring and auditing of regulatory and IRB documentation.
Assist with reports and documents to FDA.

Prepare your clinical research administrator resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your clinical research administrator resume.

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