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Clinical research nurse education requirements
Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
There are several educational requirements to become a clinical research nurse. Clinical research nurses usually study nursing, nursing science, or psychology. 55% of clinical research nurses hold a bachelor's degree, and 27% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 16,956 real clinical research nurse resumes to see exactly what clinical research nurse education sections show.
The most common colleges for clinical research nurses are the University of Phoenix and the University of Phoenix.
There are also many online clinical research nurse courses to help get the education required to be a clinical research nurse.
There are certain clinical research nurse certifications that you should consider. These clinical research nurse certifications include Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA) and Family Nurse Practitioner.
What education do you need to become a clinical research nurse?
What degree do you need to be a clinical research nurse?
- Bachelor's, 55%
- Associate, 27%
- Master's, 9%
- Diploma, 6%
- Other Degrees, 3%
What should I major in to become a clinical research nurse?
- Nursing, 82%
- Nursing Science, 3%
- Psychology, 2%
- Business, 2%
- Other Majors, 11%
Most common colleges for clinical research nurses
| Clinical research nurse common college | Percentages |
|---|---|
| University of Phoenix | 13.20% |
| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | 6.35% |
| New York University | 5.96% |
| University of Maryland - Baltimore | 5.87% |
| University of Maryland - College Park | 5.38% |
Best majors for clinical research nurses
| Rank | Major | Percentages |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nursing | 82.3% |
| 2 | Nursing Science | 2.8% |
| 3 | Psychology | 1.9% |
| 4 | Business | 1.9% |
| 5 | Biology | 1.4% |
Best colleges for clinical research nurses
The best colleges for clinical research nurses are University of Rochester, University of Tulsa, and Vanderbilt University.
A clinical research nurse 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 research nurses. 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 research nurses.
1. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$55,695
Enrollment
6,596
2. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
In-state tuition
$55,584
Enrollment
10,764
3. Yale University
New Haven, CT • Private
In-state tuition
$53,430
Enrollment
5,963
4. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI • Private
In-state tuition
$15,262
Enrollment
30,079
5. Georgetown University
Washington, DC • Private
In-state tuition
$54,104
Enrollment
7,089
6. University of California - Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA • Private
In-state tuition
$13,226
Enrollment
31,568
7. University of Virginia
Charlottesville, VA • Private
In-state tuition
$17,653
Enrollment
16,405
8. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC • Private
In-state tuition
$8,987
Enrollment
18,946
9. Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$59,430
Enrollment
8,216
10. Chamberlain College of Nursing - Arlington
Arlington, VA • Private
In-state tuition
$19,375
Enrollment
506
20 best online courses for clinical research nurses
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1. Understanding Clinical Research: Behind the Statistics
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...
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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...
3. The Beginners Course for Clinical Research
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4. Good Clinical Practice ICH GCP for Clinical Research
Certification on ICH GCP E6 R2 Good Clinical Practice for Clinical Research The Only Complete Course You Can Find Online...
5. Prehospital care of acute stroke and patient selection for endovascular treatment using the RACE scale
Acute stroke is a time-dependent medical emergency. In acute ischemic stroke, the first objective is to restore brain flow using sistemic thrombolytic treatment and, in patients with large vessel occlusion, by endovascular treatment. In hemorrhagic stroke there are also specific treatments that can improve the clinical outcome. The sooner the initiation of all these therapies the higher the clinical benefit. Thus, the organization of Stroke Code systems coordinated between emergency medical...
6. Nursing Informatics Leadership Theory and Practice
“By the end of this Course, you will be able to…” • Evaluate effective leadership styles for leadership in nursing informatics in clinical or academic contexts to improve leadership success. • Discover core values that support effective nursing informatics leadership in academic and clinical contexts to inform development of a personal leadership mission statement. • Discover competing values and polarities related to knowledge leadership and management to promote successful leadership...
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8. Clinical Research for beginners
The Art of Publishing - Master Pub Med, Study design, Biostatistics, Journal choice, Manuscript writing & Referencing...
9. Health After Cancer: Cancer Survivorship for Primary Care
This course presents basic principles of cancer survivorship to primary-care physicians. Developed by a team of experts in caring for cancer survivors, and narrated by a primary-care physician, this course provides practical tips and tools that can be easily integrated into medical practice. You will learn about the complex physical and psychosocial needs and concerns of the growing number of cancer survivors, along with the key role that primary care physicians have in guiding these patients...
10. Clinical Trials Data Management and Quality Assurance
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...
11. Certificate Course in Clinical Research (CCCR)
A Clinical Research Course-ICH-GCP E6(R2), Clinical Trials, Essential Documents, Sponsor, Investigator, Pharmaceuticals...
12. Basic of Clinical Data Management
Clinical Data Management...
13. Addiction Treatment: Clinical Skills for Healthcare Providers
This course is designed with a singular goal: to improve the care you provide to your patients with substance use disorders. By delving into a model case performed by actors, seven Yale instructors from various fields provide techniques to screen your patients for substance use disorder risk, diagnose patients to gauge the severity of their use, directly manage treatment plans, refer out to treatment services, and navigate the various conditions that may limit your patient’s access to treatment...
14. Trauma Emergencies and Care
Welcome to Trauma Emergencies and Care. In this course, you will learn about some of the mechanics and physics of trauma on the human body, and how this can cause injury. You will continue to expand your new vocabulary with medical terminology, and learn how to describe the different injuries you may see. You will also learn about the trauma system itself- and when it is important to transport patients to a trauma center. Then we will dive into specific injuries based on what part of the body...
15. The Simplest Guide to Clinical Trials Data Analysis with SAS
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16. Good Clinical Practice for Clinical Research Professionals
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17. Introduction to Integrative Nursing
This course is designed for nurses who are drawn to practice in a different way – nurses who value whole-person care and know that the essence of nursing practice is truly caring and healing. You will learn about the principles and practices of Integrative Nursing and how you can be a healing presence to all you serve. Then, you will do an integrative assessment and apply the principles of Integrative Nursing to improve symptom management and overall patient outcomes. Finally, you will explore...
18. HI-FIVE: Health Informatics For Innovation, Value & Enrichment (Clinical Perspective)
HI-FIVE (Health Informatics For Innovation, Value & Enrichment) Training is a 12-hour online course designed by Columbia University in 2016, with sponsorship from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC). The training is role-based and uses case scenarios. Also, it has additional, optional modules on other topics of interest or relevance. Although we suggest to complete the course within a month's timeframe, the course is self-paced and so you can start and...
19. Providing Trauma-Informed Care
Exploring psychological trauma and how to provide care and compassion to trauma survivors...
20. Clinical Trials Analysis, Monitoring, and Presentation
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...
Top 10 most affordable universities for clinical research nurses
The most affordable schools for clinical research nurses are SUNY Farmingdale, brigham young university, and hunter college of the city university of new york.
If the best universities for clinical research nurses 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 research nurses.
1. SUNY Farmingdale
Farmingdale, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,306
Cost of attendance
16,091
2. Brigham Young University
Provo, UT • Private
In-state tuition
$5,620
Cost of attendance
18,136
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. Clayton State University
Morrow, GA • Private
In-state tuition
$5,419
Cost of attendance
17,697
5. Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN • Private
In-state tuition
$9,992
Cost of attendance
22,430
6. Minot State University
Minot, ND • Private
In-state tuition
$7,064
Cost of attendance
15,576
7. Florida International University
Miami, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$6,556
Cost of attendance
19,434
8. University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez
Mayaguez, PR • Private
In-state tuition
$4,094
Cost of attendance
14,302
9. SUNY Polytechnic Institute
Utica, NY • Private
In-state tuition
$8,238
Cost of attendance
21,567
10. Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL • Private
In-state tuition
$5,656
Cost of attendance
21,623
Top 10 hardest universities to get into for clinical research nurses
The hardest universities for clinical research nurses to get into are University of Rochester, University of Tulsa, and Vanderbilt University.
Some great schools for clinical research nurses 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 research nurses 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 Rochester
Rochester, NY • Private
Admissions rate
29%
SAT average
1,422
2. University of Tulsa
Tulsa, OK • Private
Admissions rate
41%
SAT average
1,321
3. Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN • Private
Admissions rate
10%
SAT average
1,514
4. SUNY at Binghamton
Vestal, NY • Private
Admissions rate
40%
SAT average
1,376
5. Clemson University
Clemson, SC • Private
Admissions rate
47%
SAT average
1,337
6. Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD • Private
Admissions rate
11%
SAT average
1,513
7. Boston College
Chestnut Hill, MA • Private
Admissions rate
28%
SAT average
1,429
8. Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN • Private
Admissions rate
58%
SAT average
1,309
9. Saint Louis University
Saint Louis, MO • Private
Admissions rate
58%
SAT average
1,304
10. SUNY Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY • Private
Admissions rate
42%
SAT average
1,326
Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for clinical research nurses
The easiest schools for clinical research nurses to get into are AdventHealth University, nyack college, and d'youville college.
Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a clinical research nurse 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 research nurses.
1. AdventHealth University
Orlando, FL • Private
Admissions rate
87%
SAT average
1,016
2. Nyack College
New York, NY • Private
Admissions rate
98%
SAT average
999
3. D'Youville College
Buffalo, NY • Private
Admissions rate
100%
SAT average
1,072
4. La Roche College
Pittsburgh, PA • Private
Admissions rate
99%
SAT average
1,008
5. Saint Joseph's College of Maine
Standish, ME • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,069
6. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Bartlesville, OK • Private
Admissions rate
68%
SAT average
964
7. Gwynedd Mercy University
Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private
Admissions rate
92%
SAT average
1,031
8. Aultman College of Nursing and Health Sciences
Canton, OH • Private
Admissions rate
75%
SAT average
1,085
9. Saint Martin's University
Lacey, WA • Private
Admissions rate
96%
SAT average
1,111
10. Mount Saint Mary's University
Los Angeles, CA • Private
Admissions rate
84%
SAT average
1,031
Average clinical research nurse salary by education level
| Clinical research nurse education level | Clinical research nurse salary |
|---|---|
| Master's Degree | $70,461 |
| Bachelor's Degree | $64,995 |
| Doctorate Degree | $66,653 |
| Some College/ Associate Degree | $58,542 |
Clinical research nurse education FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025
Updated January 8, 2025