Career in Clinical Research

If you are a life science, medical or computer graduate with a dream of being a part of research and development of path breaking science projects and making medicinal breakthroughs, Clinical Research is field for you. Clinical Research is the systematic scientific study of testing a new drug, medical device, or other types of therapeutic solutions on human subjects to verify its efficacy, safety and benefits as well as record any adverse effects it might have on patients. It is used to generate clinical or pharmacological data that is then analyzed by scientific experts who determine, whether the drug or device is safe enough for large-scale use and can be launched commercially or not.

The pharmaceutical companies across the world are estimated at US$ 427 billion. They spend around 60 to 65 million dollars on Research and Development, out of which 40 billion dollars is solely dedicated to development of new drugs. 70% of time and money spent on drug development is consumed by Clinical Trials for these drugs. With technological and scientific advances, acceleration in drug discovery processes, and emphasis on finding solutions to new diseases, lifestyle problems, and diseases that have not been rendered curable yet, the Clinical Research Industry is showing a potential for strong growth at a global level over the next few years.

Thus, the industry is one of the most lucrative options to look out for in terms of employment. The US alone employs about 2,10,000 clinical research professionals while the UK has above 70,000 people working in this field. The annual salary growth of professionals in this field is calculated to be around 4%, whereas other segments show an average increase of less than 1% a year. It is projected that in the next five years, the industry will need to hire about 2,50,000 trained personnel.

The pharmaceutical industry in India has witnessed tremendous growth in the last few years and has courted recognition from industry all over the world for following reasons:

• Easy availability of English-speaking and trained talent including doctors, life science and medical personnel, technical experts, and professionals in the field of Clinical Research
• High quality of clinical equipments available in the country
• High quality of drugs that have proved their competence at the global level
• Home to a population that is more than one billion strong with a high ratio of patient population.
• Low cost of conducting trials
• World class Infrastructure available at low costs

The pharmaceutical market in India is second largest in Asia. In the last three years, India’s clinical research industry grew five times – from 20 crores to 100 crores. Latest McKinsey Report predicts that by 2010, it will grow to Rs 5,000 crores! It is also elieved that the industry will need to hire about 50,000 trained and qualified professionals in the next five years and the career prospects in the field is much brighter than other segments for at least a few years to come. Qualified and trained professionals are highly in demand in the industry. A specialized training course in the specific field from a good institute can help you unlock a bright road ahead.