CRA School – Montreal is a Canadian non-profit organization, the only provider of bilingual International Clinical Research Education, combined with unlimited e-CRO Internship and Job Placement Support, which continues till hire.
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Special programs are offered to GCP trained professionals, IRB/IEC/REB members, and to MDs and MSc/PhD holders in carrer reorientation.
The program objective is to provide all the necessary tools and know-how to allow faster access to the rewarding Clinical Research Professional careers (CRA, CRC, CTA, DM, PM, PV, MSL, etc.), which match their qualification.
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Customized corporate training or refreshment courses on ICH GCP and Canadian, resp. Quebec regulations are provided on request.
The recent technological developments and scientific discoveries increased substantially the possibilities of creating new therapeutic molecules and devices. Before approved for marketing they must be tested also on humans. However the number of clinical trials grows faster than the introduction of new trained specialists, because they usually lack practical experience. As a result, there is a chronic shortage of qualified staff (up to 30% and more according to different reports).
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This shortage increases the demand and raises the salaries level. Once a person enters into the field and gets 6-9 months ‘hands-on’ experience, the recruiters start calling to offer a better paid job. CRAs say: ‘Once you are in, you are in‘. This placed the SrCRA job among the 10 best jobs in USA and this level can be reached with only 5-6 years experience.
Clinical trials are experimental studies to assess statistically the safety and efficiency of the new developed drug candidates or devices and their action on the human health, the ratio of the related benefits and risks, and the suitable treatment regiments. After the pre-clinical laboratory studies on animals have shown product safety, the studies continue on humans in medical clinics (hence the name “clinical trials“) under the supervision of qualified physicians, called Clinical Investigators.
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Patient evaluations are carried out by their respective physicians, called Principal Investigators (PI), with the help of their Study Nurses (SN) or Clinical Research Assistants, called also Clinical Research Coordinators (CRC). The control of their work is done by the Sponsor’s Monitors called Clinical Research Associates (CRA).
The regulatory agencies (FDA, Health Canada or other) inspect only a small portion (about 2%) of all studies. The law requires from the Sponsor (the company or individual investigator that initiated the study) to monitor continuously the quality of the data and how the rights and safety of the study participants are protected. The physicians (PI or Sub-I) are responsible for the evaluation of their patients and the quality of the data, generated in their sites.
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The data management, quality control and statistical treatment of the study data is done by the Sponsor’s staff, the Clinical Trial Assistants (CTA), in-house or field Monitors or Clinical Research Associates (CRA), Data Managers (DM), Safety Managers, Medical Advisers, BioStatisticians, Project managers and other staff, trained on Study Protocol, clinical trial regulations and sponsor’s Standard Operations Procedures (SOP).
The field Clinical Research Associate (CRA) is an auditor, who visits periodically his study sites to supervise and inspect the work of the Physicians – Clinical Investigators and their Coordinators. The Monitor verifies their compliance to the Protocol and regulations, and makes sure that all regulatory requirements are met, and the quality of the data is assured. The in-house CRA and the CTA organize all Sponsor’s study related activities.
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The Clinical Research Coordinators (CRC) are Clinical research assistants who work in the medical clinics (called sites) where the studies take place. They organize all interactions with the study participants and all study related activities at the site, until the Principal Investigator (PI) is responsible for the patients’ care, evaluations, and the conformity of all the study conduct with the law and clinical trial regulations in force.
Companies look for functional English and university diploma. Life sciences, Health care/Allied Health, biology, biochemistry, biomedical engineering, social sciences, or other medical field are preferred. This guarantees that the candidate will be able to understand a research protocol when trained.
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The eligibility criteria usually include a college or university diploma. For some high level jobs, an advanced scientific degree is required. The best hiring chances have professionals, who have already some exposure and practical experience in support of clinical research activities. This is always the 1st hiring criterion.
Health professionals, trained abroad, often have difficulties when they move to another country. Foreign diplomas often are not recognized and the required local experience is missing. Regulatory affairs jobs allow remaining in their field of competences without needing a recognized diploma.
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With the exception of the clinical investigators and their nurses, the other CRPs (CRAs/CRCs/CTAs, etc.) don’t perform medical acts, they only handle study organization and documentation without making interpretations of the study data. Therefore they don’t need to have a license to practice as medical professionals.
Get a job, not just a diploma
Fast access to well paid, but unknown careers
Universal: All clinical trials carreers covered
Internship for hands-on Canadian experience
Accessible when you need it
Online training to advance at your own speed
7/7 LIVE Support by Skype till late evening
Flexible payment options adapted to your needs
Job specific preparation for interviews
JD analysis + CV adaptation for every job
Preparation for every interview till hired
Training in advance on subjects not studied yet
Active Job Placement Assistance
Instructions on the pre-selection questionnaires
Coaching on typical interview questions & traps
Introduction to industry slang and terminology
Coaching & support on Professional positioning
Professional branding coaching & mentoring
Reference letters, Job Alerts + job assistance
Networking meetings & weekly consultations
Universal program for all needs
US, Canada, EU, ICH GCP & QC regulations
Options for GCP professionals, MD, MSc/PhD
Referral Program with unlimited Bonuses
Thank you for the articles and the interview preparation. I am very happy that I got in this course. The CV that you adapted worked very well, the interview also, and I got an internship in Algorithme pharma. Can I have a certificate for the material that I have studied till now in case if they ask it? I will continue the course as soon as I can. Thank you again.
Iren Karpov from St-Petersbourg
I would like to thank you for referring me for the Clinical Trial Associate position at JSS. I greatly appreciate the assistance you have provided me. Today I signed my contract with them. I am grateful for the time you spent reviewing my application and recommending me for the job. Once more, I would like to thank you for all your advice and help.
Sofia Cartamil from Argentina
I wanted to let you know that I started as pharmacovigilance coordinator at Sanofi. Thank you a lot. The fact that I am taking this course helped me being familiar with acronyms, regulatory bodies and their roles and understanding processes. I am very happy and I want to learn more. I am resuming now the course and should be able to start soon the chapter 10.
Haataja Parent from Finland
I want to thank you for introducing the Clinical Research careers to me. I came a few times to the networking meetings organized by Access pharma and spoke to several specialists. I learned a lot about these professions. This week I just started as Assistant CRA at Covance and I am so happy. Thank you a lot for all you are doing
Alex Aresenaux from Quebec
I managed to land into a Quality Compliance job at Roche. I got it through networking as instructed in the course and I applied with the CV that we made in the program. I am planning on continuing the CRA school course shortly. I am at the chapter 11 only but I had to take a small break since i broke my collar bone.
Antoine Sirgi from Montreal
I wanted to thank you for your help, advises and recommendations. In November I started as CRC in the JGH. The recruiter was actually a former consultant of your school and it was a very good reference. It is in the field of onco-surgery, not an entry level job. I am very happy and my mother also
Masha Kosher from Montreal
Hello Svet, I want to let you know that I got a job as Clinical Research Assistant in McGill but I will have the functions also of a CRA. I will be the only CRA in my team without competitor. Thank you for all your advices!
Eva Mathieu from France
Cela fait un bon moment que ne nous nous sommes pas parlé. La nouvelle c'est que j'ai quitté ma job de représentant pour commencer celle d’associé en recherche clinique. Merci.
Jamal Nali - Morocco
I was very busy because 2 weeks ago we got baby twins and I had an interview for an internship in the same clinic where Cedric started. After he got the CDA job, he told me about this opportunity. The Job Insertion Program really works. The interview went pretty good. I will start in January.
Zouheir Zallif from Morocco
I am excited to let you know that I received an offer for the position of Clinical Research Assistant that I interviewed for last week. Thank you all for the support throughout. Your guidance and advice has been very timely and apt. I really appreciate it. I shall continue to work on completing my CRA training in the meanwhile and move ahead in my career.
Rao Smit from Montreal
Merci beaucoup pour la référence et le support pour la préparation du CV. Je crois que le bénévolat dans la clinique de CIDA a joué aussi un grand rôle et aussi le fait qu'un employé de la compagnie vous a appelé et vérifié mes antécédents. J'ai été approuvé et j'ai commencé la semaine passée comme Data Associate at Ethica. Pour moi ce n'est que le premier pas. Je vais assister à tous les évènements de réseautage que vous organisez.
Cedric Marion from France
Suite à une compression de personnel, je suis restée sans emploi durant 6 mois! Finalement j’ai postulé pour un poste de délégué médical, mais vu mon expérience ils m’ont proposé le poste de MSL. En fait, le fait d'avoir mis sur mon CV que j'ai suivi une formation en recherche clinique a rajouté un plus.
Leila Bouslah - Algeria
First of all, I would like to tell you that I am really impressed by the quality of your school. The service is excellent and we can always have feedback in a timely fashion when needed. I really enjoy reading the chapters and am always impatient to go to the next one. I love it! I have only good words for your school and I am spreading my thoughts around.
Josée Bordeleau from Montreal
I didn't know anything about drug and pharmaceutical industry, but the CRA School helped me a lot to get familiar with the pharma field. I finished all chapters about 8 months ago, but I went to my country because my father passed away. When I came back, I got a job in data managing in a pharma company. Now I would like to pass the final exam to get the certificate. Thanks for everything!
Mojtaba Tabataei from Iran
I want to thank you again, I am doing very well in my work. I find it very easy and I am exceeding in my goals. I work with Novo Nordisk Algeria and I got the most important number of subjects recruited. I am proud because the site was new and I was new, but thanks of your courses, I did it.
Hind Kezadri from Algeria
I got the Drug Safety Associate position at Serono and I am writing to thank you for taking the time to support me for my job application and kindly putting in a good word for me as my reference. If I can be of any help to you in future, please do not hesitate to let me know. Thank you again.
Reyhaneh Vejdani from Toronto
Please find enclosed my homework 9. Thank you for the congratulations. I was very lucky with my job; it came from a recommendation from my network and then an informal meeting, which lead to a formal interview. They said that being enrolled in your course showed that I was serious about my new career in Clinical Research. Thank you again, I am enjoying your course.
Lynda Lennox - Scottland [got a job at chapter 9 of 30]
Merci. Ma femme et le bébé se portent bien et j’ai trouvé un travail. Je travaille actuellement comme coordinateur de recherche clinique au CHUM. Bien que par ce travail je suis énormément en contact avec les moniteurs des compagnies pharmaceutiques et les clinical trials manager, je suis toujours à la recherche d'un poste d'ARC dans une compagnie.
Christian Eyandja - Benin
Cela fait maintenant un bout de temps que je n'ai pas envoyé de devoirs. En fait, j'ai obtenu un travail en tant que Chargée de projet de recherche clinique en rhumatologie. Également, je suis coordinatrice d'une autre étude clinique et aussi d'un gros projet de recherche clinique dont j'ai fait une demande de subvention de 2.5 millions de dollars auprès des IRSC. Je souhaite finir la formation car j'ai encore beaucoup de choses à apprendre.
Nathalie Aimable de Québec
Thank you very, very much ! Please accept my enormous gratitude for the professional analysis of my CV and profile. I already started to work as a CRA in Toronto !
Svetlana Semenyuk from Ukraine
I discussed the JD and how to adapt my CV with the Support but at the interview I got stressed and I didn't answer some questions like I wanted. Svet suggested sending an email with the checklist that I developed during the course and I was called for a 2-nd interview. I am very happy that I got the CRC job and I will continue the course with the monitoring module.
Pamela Lachance from Montreal
Hi Svet. Yes, I got the IRB manual that you sent me and the interview went very well. Thanks for the help! I got a job offer for IRB Associate and I am starting on Sept. 2. I will be very busy in the first months but we will keep in touch
Tony Lebed from Russia
I've got a job and started last week! It's going very well so far. Thank you very much for your recommendations. The program helped me a lot. The CVs in response to ads have not worked. When she had received my letter she said in the minutes that followed please submit your resume and I had the interview. Thank you because you truly have experience with the Quebecois!
Rokia Sanogo - Ivory Coast
I just started as a CRC Assistant at Innovaderm in Montreal. They actually created the position when they hired me, otherwise, I would have been a documentation assistant. I’m being trained now to be a CRC. So following the course must have given me an advantage. I just finished chapter 16 and I'm trying to organize my time to allow me to finish the CRA School course. I would eventually like to switch into a CRA role later. I think the course helped a lot.
Tasso Chountalos - Montreal
I have very good news. I used the strategies that I learned in the CRA course and I was officially hired by MSD as Clinical Data Coordinator. I want to thank CRA School for such an excellent program and the permanent advice and follow-up that I received so far. I haven’t finished the course yet, however, it was an essential part of the selection process.
Andres Gonzalez from Colombia
Je voulais vous dire que j'ai trouvé un travail en recherche clinique grâce à une de mes relations de mon réseau LinkedIn. Je commence officiellement lundi, même si j'ai déjà fait 2 jours là-bas. Je suis très contente car je me rends compte que ma formation me sert beaucoup.
Natacha C. Grand - Boucherville
Dear CRA School, i just wanted to let you know that i was offered a position as a CRC at the MGH, starting in early January. it is a step in a good direction, and will help me gain more experience as a CRC. I will continue to work on the course, and network for the organization.
Mara Leimans from Montreal
I wanted to share with you that I found a job as Study Management Specialist for Aptalis, I am very pleased that I had the opportunity to work with the CRA school and I want to thank you enormously for all the advices and all the guidance, always given with a lot of respect and professionalism. Thanks again
Paulina Zamudio from Colombia
I am glad i am taking the course because before I had no idea of what this part of drug development was about. And the support by Skype is awesome. The resume you guys corrected for me worked out – just got a call from Algorithme for Data analyst. They wanna schedule an interview. Thank you for all of your help ! If I get the job, i will make a nice donation to your school
Sergiy Kalynych from Ukraine
I have good news to share. Yesterday I received a job offer from Veritas IRB as a Documents/ Project Associate. I would like to thank you for your encouragement and support. The CRA certificate opened a lot of doors for me. All you said about networking is true and I got all interviews through my contacts in one way or another. I started officially this week. It's nice to see familiar faces from the school there!
Leen Stephan from Jordan
Thank you for your e mail, I appreciate your support. The CRA/CRC degree helped of course; they asked me lot of questions in my interview about ICH/GCP regulations. Now I have almost one year of Canadian experience, and I am now looking for jobs in drug safety/pharmacovigilance field. Thank you again, and have a great day.
Rayhaneh Vejdani from Iran
Thanks for the articles about the interview preparation. The interview was as I expected, since they asked a lot of questions concerning monitoring experience. I was honest about my experience and I was not sure what they would decide since there were other candidates. But finally I got the position of Project manager
Manal Ghamlouche from Syria
Thank you so much for your congratulations. Actually, yes, INC Research is a big company, I am very happy. I would tell you that your training offered me a good knowledge to complete my interview successfully. Many thanks again.
Yacine Touté from Paris
I found an opening at Abbvie. I started this Monday as an Associate Program Manager. Great company, great pay and great benefits. Thanks for all. Best regards
Harminder Kaur from Montreal
Thank you for the articles, this was very helpful. They told me that actually I was very adequate. They called me few hours later and the next round is tomorrow. - The second round went even better and I am hired. I am starting next week officially as a Clinical Trial Assistant in Comac Medical. Thank you guys for your support and I will finish this course!
Antony Kolarov - Bulgaria
I just want to inform you that i got the position in jss medical research as a CTA , i started today and thank you for all your support and help. The classes and the job insertion program are the best. Thanks to the cra training center's team for their availability and advises. I stay available if you need anything from me.
Maimouna Barry
I wanted to let you know that I got an interview at Algorithme Pharma and I got a job as Clinical Research Scientist. It is not a CRA job but it fits even better my qualification. All your suggestions worked very well. I will start next week and I will try to finish the program, you knbow that I am still in the beginning
Sophie Mathieu from Montreal
I would like to let you know that I got a job as a CRC in the OPUS Clinic . I am very happy, it is the first step :-). Thank you for everything. I would like to know is it possible to have the rest of the chapters and a certificate for what I have already studied because my new employer asked it? Thanks a lot
Sefika Ozcelik from Turkey
I was unable to find a job when I heard about CRA School. I was lucky to get accepted and volunteered there to build my network. I got 2 interviews in Pharmascience, but I was only at chapter 4 and had insufficient experience. Two weeks later they called me to say that they created a special position for me. I am so thankful to Mamadou and Svet for all their help.
Sihem Doggui from Pharmascience
I thank you very much for your CV adaptation service. In March this year I got a job with Quintiles Transnational, a CRO, in Ghana. This company is headquartered in USA. I know very well that your assistance on the CV helped me to get the CRA job with the company.
Armstrong Cudjoe from Ghana
I started networking since from the first chapter as suggested in the course and a few weeks later I found a job as Research Assistant in the McGill University. I will continue the course as soon as I can because I am on the forth chapter only. I want to move to a CRA position one day.
Liliane Mefanche from Cameroun