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Clinical Data Analyst / Specialist |
Career OverviewA clinical data analyst, also known as a clinical data specialist, works to help the research team accurately and appropriately capture and record data for scientific study and validation. The job of the clinical data analyst is really to ensure that the experiment or protocol is carried out consistently and that there is verifiable and repeatable scientific data to back the research.
The clinical data analyst may be required to design case forms and other recording measures, determine appropriate validation tests, specifically define data collection methods and measurements, develop data bases and other computer programs to explore and detail research findings and help to prepare and present data to stakeholders and other interested parties.
The clinical data analyst may also be required to conduct trainings on the technical and software programs, purchase and understand new programs, or even develop specific software programs for the various research outcomes.
The clinical data analyst needs to have excellent interpersonal and communication skills, as they will be required to share information between members of the team in the appropriate format. The clinical data analyst may also be required to help develop data collection profiles and help quantify research findings.
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Career RequirementsResearch projects require a minimum of a Bachelors level education and significant lab experience for an entry-level position. The degree may be in computer science, mathematics, statistics, biostatistics or any other related field.
A clinical data analyst working more independently will need to have a Masters or Doctoral level education, again with significant laboratory work. A background in using data collection and analysis programs such as CliniTrial or Oracle as well as programming experience is also required in most facilities.
Additional experience in related specialties, particularly in data or research-based fields is often considered for those individuals with extensive prior knowledge in this area.
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Job OutlookSuccessful and appropriate data collection and reporting is they key to all research projects. Since the biotechnology field continues to grow at a higher than average rate the demand for trained and experienced clinical data analysts continues to grow at a higher level than other fields. This increase in anticipated to last for several years and even then their will just be a slight decrease in the demand.
The field of clinical data analysis continues to evolve from the more passive data collection role to that of an active planner in the design and process of the experiment and process. As this role changes the demand for more clinically trained data analysts will increase as well.
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Career TrackA clinical data analyst has options to work for either a private sector company or a hospital or research facility. With either option the opportunity to advance to a supervisory or management role is available, but usually only to those with Masters or higher education and significant laboratory experience.
Clinical data analysts may also find the opportunity to complete some contract work or even help with development of new software or hardware for data collection. Some clinical data analysts may choose to work as software writers or as programmers specifically for data collection materials.
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CompensationThe amount of yearly salary increases with both education and experience. An entry level Bachelors clinical data analyst can expect to start at approximately $29,000, but will be making closer to $36,000 by the end of the third year.
Clinical data analysts with Masters level or higher training, some supervisory roles and over 5 years of experience usually earn between $45,000 and $58,000 dollars. Many private facilities offer additional bonuses and incentives over and above the standards salary.
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