Career structures vary from company to company and are not always very clear-cut. Clinical Research Associate (CRA) positions are generally set at three levels, with increasing responsibility:

• Level 1: visiting investigative centers, setting up and organizing clinical trials, liaising with center staff, and undertaking necessary administration;
• Level 2: more involvement in activities such as protocol development, design of case record forms (CRFs), and writing research reports;
• Level 3: managing projects, possibly on an international scale.

CRAs within a Contract Research Organization can build up and widen their experience, with a variety of sponsor pharmaceutical companies, in different therapeutic areas and in different phases of clinical research.

Most companies have clinical trials management/executive positions, which would be the next step for an experienced CRA. Some companies prefer PhD holders for senior posts. For positions such as medical adviser or medical director