Research assistant
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A Research Assistant is a junior graduate, employed on a temporary contract by a college or university or a research institute, for the purpose of academic research. Research assistants are not independent and not responsible for the out-come of the research and are responsible to a supervisor or Principal Investigator.
Research assistants (in some institutions referred to as Research Officer) are often enrolled in a higher degree (e.g. Masters or Ph.D.) programme. In research institutions without graduate programmes, research assistants positions are typically for graduates who are gaining research experience on short term contracts.
[edit] Undergraduate and Post-doctoral level
Although a research assistant is normally appointed at graduate level, due to the short-term nature of such position, so-called undergraduate research assistant are sometimes appointed to support research.
Similarly a postdoctoral research assistant who has recently been awarded a doctoral degree, may hold a temporary appointment as a research assistant, especially for position without any autonomy and research independence that requires high degree reliability.
[edit] Clinical Research Assistants
A Clinical Research Assistant is employed by a hospital or medical research centre, who is involved in the administration of clinical trials. He or she may assist a senior investigator with recruiting and enrolling research subjects, as well as with correspondence and grant applications.
