What does a Clinical Research Coordinator do?
A clinical research coordinator is a healthcare professional responsible for administering clinical trials of drugs or medications. Clinical research coordinators work under the supervision of clinical research managers to collect data and help inform trial participants about the study's objectives. They must ensure that these trials have met all regulations, including drug safety, government regulations, and the organization's code of ethics. Clinical research coordinators must obtain a bachelor's degree in nursing and have at least two years of healthcare experience.
Clinical research coordinator responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real clinical research coordinator resumes:
- Assess study participants for adverse reactions or complications and manage side effects of chemotherapy and other study relate drugs.
- Establish and maintain strong community partnerships to achieve HIV prevention objectives.
- Direct acquisition and analysis of functional MRI research data following GCP and FDA regulations
- Prepare and maintain IRB and regulatory documentation for various research projects and consent patients for clinical research.
- Facilitate constant communication between principal investigators, oncology nurses, and patients to address concerns and maximize eligibility and enrollment.
- Schedule patient for study procedures; initiate/coordinate drug orders, laboratory procedures and treatments for patients base on standing protocol orders.
- Adhere to documentation procedures to ensure cGMP and GLP.
- Design and implement GLP compliance and departmental cross-training programs for new and existing employees.
- Coordinate use-reuse endoscope reprocessing solution efficacy tests.
- Present research findings to the supervisor through Microsoft PowerPoint presentations.
- Maintain confidentiality of patient-relate records (HIPAA) including written and verbal communications.
- Communicate effectively with team members, site coordinators and physicians via teleconferencing and WebExs.
- Maintain audits, collecting/organizing/communicating observations, and creating PowerPoint decks for monthly executive meetings.
- Assist in preparation of investigator-initiat protocols, IRB submissions, and assist in research budgeting contracts.
- Perform routine monitoring activities ensuring quality control at study visits along with proper documentation and GCP.
Clinical research coordinator skills and personality traits
We calculated that 11% of Clinical Research Coordinators are proficient in Patients, Informed Consent, and IRB. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Interpersonal skills, and Leadership skills.
We break down the percentage of Clinical Research Coordinators that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patients, 11%
Schedule patient for study procedures; initiate/coordinate drug orders, laboratory procedures and treatments for patients based on standing protocol orders.
- Informed Consent, 10%
Worked independently providing study coordination, including screening of potential patients for protocol eligibility and participating in the informed consent process.
- IRB, 7%
Assisted in preparation of investigator-initiated protocols, IRB submissions, and assisted in research budgeting contracts.
- Data Collection, 5%
Coordinate all aspects of data collection, retrieval, management and analysis for clinical research protocols within Comprehensive Cancer Center.
- Research Projects, 4%
Confer with principal investigators and study coordination in developing plans for research projects and to discuss interpretation of results.
- Patient Care, 4%
Coordinated and supervised clinical operations of a clinical trial and participants in assessing, planning, implementing and evaluating patient care.
Common skills that a clinical research coordinator uses to do their job include "patients," "informed consent," and "irb." You can find details on the most important clinical research coordinator responsibilities below.
Communication skills. One of the key soft skills for a clinical research coordinator to have is communication skills. You can see how this relates to what clinical research coordinators do because "natural sciences managers must be able to communicate clearly with a variety of audiences, such as scientists, policymakers, and the public." Additionally, a clinical research coordinator resume shows how clinical research coordinators use communication skills: "coordinated data gathering, communications, to ensure fda and study compliance was being met across all sites congruently. "
Interpersonal skills. Another essential skill to perform clinical research coordinator duties is interpersonal skills. Clinical research coordinators responsibilities require that "natural sciences managers lead research teams and therefore need to work well with others in order to reach common goals." Clinical research coordinators also use interpersonal skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "demonstrated excellent interpersonal skills ensuring smooth collaboration with cros, quintiles, rps & inventive health. "
Leadership skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of clinical research coordinators is leadership skills. This skill is critical to many everyday clinical research coordinator duties, as "natural sciences managers must be able to organize, direct, and motivate others." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "named 'nurse of the year' 2006 by department peers for displaying leadership qualities in patient recruitment and profit productivity"
Problem-solving skills. For certain clinical research coordinator responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "problem-solving skills." The day-to-day duties of a clinical research coordinator rely on this skill, as "natural sciences managers use scientific observation and analysis to find answers to complex technical questions." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what clinical research coordinators do: "performed data management for all research studies including data entry and query resolution. "
Time-management skills. Another common skill required for clinical research coordinator responsibilities is "time-management skills." This skill comes up in the duties of clinical research coordinators all the time, as "natural sciences managers must be able to perform multiple administrative, supervisory, and technical tasks while ensuring that projects remain on schedule." An excerpt from a real clinical research coordinator resume shows how this skill is central to what a clinical research coordinator does: "collaborate with industry sponsors to meet data deadline submissions and prepare for fda audit preparation. "
The three companies that hire the most clinical research coordinators are:
- University of Pennsylvania174 clinical research coordinators jobs
- Massachusetts General Hospital96 clinical research coordinators jobs
- Columbia University in the City of New York64 clinical research coordinators jobs
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Compare different clinical research coordinators
Clinical research coordinator vs. Study director
Technically, a study director carries out scientific responsibilities for protocol design or study plan and approval. Study directors supervise the gathering, analysis, interpretation, documentation, and reporting of data results. They handle the matriculation of students with regard to data management system development. Working with the computer systems team is part of their duties so they will be able to establish a data management system in tracking the study participants. They also support the toxicology team or group on different project teams.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a clinical research coordinator are more likely to require skills like "patients," "patient care," "gcp," and "research data." On the other hand, a job as a study director requires skills like "toxicology," "study design," "project management," and "data analysis." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Study directors tend to make the most money working in the health care industry, where they earn an average salary of $87,246. In contrast, clinical research coordinators make the biggest average salary, $54,271, in the health care industry.The education levels that study directors earn slightly differ from clinical research coordinators. In particular, study directors are 6.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a clinical research coordinator. Additionally, they're 6.2% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Clinical research coordinator vs. Coordinator and research assistant
A research nurse specializes in conducting studies and scientific research for healthcare and medical development. They may work for medical facilities, private clinics, learning institutions, and government agencies. It is their duty to design research strategies and procedures, gather and analyze samples through various scientific methods, coordinate with other experts, and develop treatment and healthcare plans to optimize patient services and outcomes. Moreover, a research nurse typically works with a team of researchers, which requires an active communication line while adhering to the organization's policies and regulations.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real clinical research coordinator resumes. While clinical research coordinator responsibilities can utilize skills like "phlebotomy," "crc," "excellent interpersonal," and "regulatory agencies," coordinator and research assistants use skills like "powerpoint," "emr," "surgical procedures," and "data analysis."
On average, coordinator and research assistants earn a lower salary than clinical research coordinators. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, coordinator and research assistants earn the most pay in the education industry with an average salary of $46,971. Whereas clinical research coordinators have higher pay in the health care industry, with an average salary of $54,271.coordinator and research assistants earn similar levels of education than clinical research coordinators in general. They're 1.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 6.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Clinical research coordinator vs. Research nurse
Study coordinators oversee the entire process of clinical research from its inception to its completion. The coordinators make certain that human subjects are safe and well-protected. They identify the eligibility of the subject through clinical record screening and medical information extracting. It is their responsibility to maintain the regulatory documents based on the requirements of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). They should develop skills and knowledge in clinical trials, study protocol, and patient care.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a clinical research coordinator is likely to be skilled in "patient care," "phlebotomy," "crc," and "excellent interpersonal," while a typical research nurse is skilled in "clinical care," "human subjects," "direct patient care," and "patient safety."
Research nurses earn the highest salary when working in the pharmaceutical industry, where they receive an average salary of $61,182. Comparatively, clinical research coordinators have the highest earning potential in the health care industry, with an average salary of $54,271.When it comes to education, research nurses tend to earn similar degree levels compared to clinical research coordinators. In fact, they're 2.3% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 3.6% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Clinical research coordinator vs. Study coordinator
Even though a few skill sets overlap between clinical research coordinators and study coordinators, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a clinical research coordinator might have more use for skills like "research projects," "phlebotomy," "crc," and "regulatory agencies." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of study coordinators require skills like "clinical trials," "home health," "human subjects," and "nursing home. "
In general, study coordinators earn the most working in the health care industry, with an average salary of $50,589. The highest-paying industry for a clinical research coordinator is the health care industry.The average resume of study coordinators showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to clinical research coordinators. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 2.9% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 1.4%.Types of clinical research coordinator
Updated January 8, 2025
