Research Assistant Job Description

Research interests you. You've always wanted to get into research. And you want to start off by assisting someone so that you learn the ropes of the trade, as they say. But do you know what a research assistant's job description entails? Answering 'researching things' doesn't count. Not really, you don't? That's alright. Just read the following article to know more.

Job Description of a Research Assistant

These are some of the duties and functions that a research assistant is expected to handle.

• Go through the different research documents and edit them.
• Submit protocols of edited documents.
• Obtain consent documents from the subjects on whom the research is conducted or the guardians of those subjects.
• Make tabular formats, fact sheets, graphs and reports on each of the research results in order to summarize them.
• Prepare databases as well as manage and manipulate them whenever needed.
• They assist in the designing of questionnaires and other survey methodologies.
• Study and screen all the subjects that have registered as study subjects and determine their suitability for the research study that is to be conducted.
• Take care of the follow-up that is required after the study is conducted.
• Track the research participants for the same.
• Proofread the date that has been researched and added in tables for any mistakes and correct them if any.
• Take charge of the laboratory space and manage its allocation timings and days.
• Prepare special programs for certain tasks like data entry and statistical analysis.
• Handle clerical work like data entry and others which are essential for completion of the project.
• Interact with the clients to find out the nature of the job that is required to be done.
• Perform assessment of the needs with the clients.
• Exhibit the results of the research experiments to groups of people.
• Assist in preparation of presentations, manuscripts and project related topics.
• Survey the job of survey interviewers.
• Keep a track of the laboratory expenses incurred.
• Handle matters of participant reimbursements.
• Keep a check of all the materials needed in the laboratory and buy them as and when needed.
• Look into the different requirements of the research experiments and collect whatever is needed.
• Use computers to perform varied forms of analysis etc of statistical data.
• Convert material into code data for computer entry.
• Conduct research which requires the use of the Internet or the library.
• Formulate and bring into force varied research quality and control procedures.

Clinical Research Assistant's Job Description

A clinical research assistant's job has him working in a clinical setup. He is responsible for setting up, monitoring and completing clinical traits. Some of the other duties that come under clinical research job description are:

• Developing and writing the different trial protocols. Thereby specifying the purpose and the methodology of the trial.
• Presenting these trial protocols to a steering committee.
• Designing forms for data collection.
• Coordinating with the ethics committee to gather daily updates. The ethics committee is responsible for the well-being of the subject's rights and safety.
• Interacting with the doctors and consultants on matters of conducting the trial.
• Keeping a check of all the approvals and applications that oversee the marketing and research of new and existing drugs.
• Setting up the centers, complete with all the materials and facilities needed.
• Training a staff according to the industrial standards and needs.
• Monitoring and keeping an account of all the trials conducted.
• Visiting the study centers to keep a check on the trials conducted and their progress.
• Verifying the data that has been supplied by the patients and the data that has been entered. Correcting errors, if any.
• Discussing the results of the trial with a medical professional and converting it into a technical format.
• Preparing the final report of the trial and handling the dispatching to various publishing houses, if the need be.
• Making an archive of all the material that has been studied for future reference.

So before you decide to get into the field of research and development, study this list of the duties that need to be performed and base your decisions on this.