Clinical Researcher Career Guide and Counseling

Question: What can I do with an M.S. in Experimental Psychology if I do NOT want to become a clinical researcher? I plan to go back to school within a few years and earn a PhD in psychology, perhaps in psycholinguistics. In the meantime, I would like to get some job experience. I know a PhD involves doing a lot of research, but I'm not sure I want to do research in the industrial/clinical sense. I eventually would like to teach as a tenured professor (hence the PhD). I am not sure what my job options are with the degree I currently have that might help me later if I do plan to pursue a doctorate in psycholinguistics. It's just that after 2 years in grad. school the thought of ANOVAs and internal validity makes me sick to my stomach. Is it too late to take another career path?

Answer: I suggest that you just use your previous academic achievements as a foundation for your PhD studies in whatever sub-area of psychology interests you the most. In the meantime, you might consider a temporary teaching position at a local community college. This will provide you a respite from academic challenges so that you can recharge your cognitive batteries, so to speak. And, you can determine if the academic life suits your personality and fulfills your long-term goals.

Question: what is the education needed for a clinical researcher?

Answer: Go to http://www.bls.gov they have very valuable info there about virtually every occupation.

Question: what is academic researcher perspective on CRO involvement in clinical trials?

Answer: To me, it is a positive step which allows the scientist to spend more time engaged in mastering his discipline at a deep level, rather than the formalism of the experiments that he wants to conduct.

Question: I need list of some tuberculosis physicain clinical researchers in India, Particularly in DELHI/NCR?

Answer: Vikrant to answer your question correctly need to know what is on your mind, however short of that go to All India Institute of Medical Sciences and especially to the department of tuberculosis and chest diseases and to the bacteriology section of the pathology department. I believe there is also armed forces medical centre in New Delhi as well which is quite advanced

Question: Why do medical researchers take too long to start clinical trials? Almost everyday there is a report of a cancer breakthrough preclinical trial, then it takes years for human trials to begin, if they begin at all. It's as if the researchers just want their egos stroked by their preclinical research, and are afraid of testing their research on humans for fear of failure. Take parthenolide...this kills leukemia stem cells, yet no clinical trial yet for about 3 years. nonsense. Then there is cyclopamine...may be great in myeloma, yet no clinical trial. More nonsense

Answer: Because the government tries to avoid having another Thalidomide problem...by making sure drugs are SAFE before they go to clinical trials.

Question: A medical researcher claims that she has developed a test that will identify the onset of the common cold 48 h A medical researcher claims that she has developed a test that will identify the onset of the common cold 48 hours before symptoms appear. This knowledge, it is claimed, would enable a person to take action which would reduce the severity of cold symptoms. In clinical trials, the test gave false negative results 2 times in 120 subjects. Calculate the probability of a false negative.

Answer: I'm not sure if this is some fancy statistics thing, but I think since 1 in 60 subjects gets a false negative, you can just divide 1 by 60, giving you approximately 0.0166 which means there is a 1.66% chance of getting a false negative.

Question: What are the educational requirements to become a psychological researcher? I've been considering pursuing an undergraduate degree in psychology, with the intention of working in research, and not actually becoming a clinical psychologist with patients. I was wondering what sort of educational commitments this would entail. Would I have to go to Med School and therefore do ER and surgery rotations eventually? I was considering merely a BA in psychology, but I believe the BS will offer me more. I'm just trying to get a sense of where this track would lead me. Thanks!

Answer: No medical school but you will have to advance farther then a BA. More like a PH.D or a Doctorate or psychology. And followed by a one yr. internship. I am taking a psychology class right now and they mention all the fields/branches. They mention that a PH.D is really needed to advance and get the best jobs. So continue and receive you masters. Then decide if you feel like going another 4 or 5 yrs. But with a Masters in Psychology you can work in the field of social work.

Question: Where are the best graduate programs for psychology/clinical therapy? I've checked out the graduate psychology programs at many schools but they all seem to emphasize careers in research and education, rather than psychotherapy. What schools train practitioners of psychology, rather than researchers?

Answer: A really good starting location is the american psychological association website. You will find a list of accredited Ph.D. and Psy.D. programs by state. No matter what you decide, make sure you go to an accredited school. Believe it or not, BOTH PsyD and PhD programs have a focus on research, and you have to do a masters thesis and dissertation for both. PhD: you will learn how to conduct clinical research, as well as how to be a therapist and clinician. PsyD: you will learn how to read, analyze, interpret research, and how to be a therapist and clinician. **Also, each PhD program is different in how much emphasis they put on research and clinical work. That is something that reading through the website will tell you. I know that UIC (U of IL in Chicago) is super big on research, NIU (Northern IL U) is more on clinical, but I don't know about other ones. Look at how much field work you will be required to do, and also look at the required course. that will give you an idea of where they stand** another HUGE difference between PhD and PsyD that is worth considering is this: PhD: in general, accepted students are fully funded with tuition waivers that means that you will be a research assistant or teachers assistant for 20 hours/week for someone at the university you are at. you will receive a stipend that depends largely on the school--each school is different. some include health insurance, too. In other words, the school is paying you to become a Doctor and attend their school. PsyD: never (at most, extremely rarely) do they offer this type of deal. you will survive on your own money, and from students I have talked to, I heard the debt can be overwhelming ($400,000.00!!!). It's so large because you can't really work outside of school because you're so busy unless you attend part time, but then it takes even longer to get the degree, and AAAHHH! annoyance! Okay, this is really long! I'll shut up now.

Question: Why are clinical trials so regulated on the terminally ill? I work in a research (cancer) hospital on clinical trials and other related work dealing with various types of cancer. Why do you think putting a terminally ill patient on a clinical trial is so difficult with the regulations. In many cases, trial drugs have a shot at success (prolonging life) and aren't as potent as some traditional chemo/radiation methods. You still need consent, it is still regulated etc. These people are dying. They have less than a month to live. They are choosing to die. Why can't they be forced onto trials that may save their lives or at very least, help researchers learn more about their disease?

Answer: We don't have the right to force anyone to do anything, this is still a free country,and it is arrogant and selfish for us to tell someone how to live their last days.

Question: Is anybody doing clinical research anymore? Seems like every day you hear about medical studies being released on various topics. The thing is, when you look into them a little, turns out they're all statistical studies of already existing data. The modern 'researcher' doesn't work in a lab or clinic, they just use a computer to comb through medical and insurance records and other statistical data looking for correlations and patterns. Not that this isn't important, but christ, we KNOW smoking is bad for you, do we really need to know it's effect on every single organ and metabolic process in the body ten times over. Sigh, actually I suppose we do, but that kind of research is safe, cheap, and boring, it doesn't break any new ground. Is real, clinical research on new theories and ideas that expensive? That dangerous? Where will the new discoveries come from if we're not willing to take the risk?

Answer: There are still several clinical trials being done. How do you think we come up with new drugs, surgical methods, and therapies? Literature studies are still important, because you can look at several studies giving you a very large test group. It also can give a different perspective. All science is done by building on the knowledge we have.