Clinical research coordinator

What does a clinical research coordinator do?

A clinical research coordinator runs the daily work of a clinical study at a research site.

You schedule participant visits, carry out the procedures the protocol requires, collect data and keep records ready for audit.

Most coordinators in Singapore work in public hospitals, specialist centres, universities and research institutes. Some work at contract research organisations. You usually report to a principal investigator or a clinical research manager.

You work with doctors, nurses, pharmacists, study sponsors, monitors and ethics committees. You also deal directly with participants and their families, so the role mixes administration with patient contact.

What the work involves

• Screen and enrol participants, and book their visits within the windows set by the protocol.
• Carry out study procedures such as sample collection, questionnaires and follow-up calls, and record the results.
• Pull details from medical records and enter them into study databases, then answer data queries.
• Prepare submissions and updates for ethics committees, and keep the site files complete.
• Talk to sponsors and monitors about enrolment progress, safety events and study logistics.
• Explain the study to participants and families, and track study invoices and supplies.

Pay in Singapore

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Skills a clinical research coordinator needs

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Clinical research coordinator job description

A Singapore hospital, research institute or university is looking for a clinical research coordinator to run clinical studies from start-up to close-out.

You will recruit and follow participants, keep study data accurate and make sure the site follows the protocol, good clinical practice and local rules. You will work closely with investigators, sponsors and ethics committees. A diploma or degree in life sciences, nursing or a related field is usual.

Responsibilities

• Plan study activities with the investigator and set up the site before a study starts.
• Identify, screen and recruit eligible participants, and take informed consent as delegated.
• Schedule visits and carry out protocol procedures and follow-ups on time.
• Enter and check study data from medical records and source documents, and resolve queries.
• Record and report adverse events and protocol deviations to the investigator, sponsor and ethics committee.
• Prepare ethics and regulatory submissions, including amendments and progress reports, and keep the investigator site file current.
• Handle participant information in line with the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) and the study protocol.
• Manage study supplies, samples and shipments with pharmacy and laboratory teams.
• Track study budgets, participant payments and invoices with the finance team.
• Support monitoring visits and audits, and close out actions found by monitors.

Requirements

• Diploma or degree in life sciences, nursing, pharmacy or a related health field.
• Training in good clinical practice (GCP), often with a valid certificate that employers ask to see.
• Some employers ask for one to two years in a clinical or research setting; others hire fresh graduates as assistants.
• Comfort with clinical trial management systems, electronic data capture and Excel.
• Clear written and spoken English, and a second language that helps with local participants.
• Attention to detail, and the patience to explain studies to patients and families.

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Clinical research coordinator career path

Most coordinators start as research assistants or junior coordinators, then take on more studies and more complex trials.

Senior roles move towards managing teams and study portfolios.

1. Clinical research assistant

   Entry

   You support a coordinator with data entry, filing, sample handling and visit preparation, and you build GCP habits.

2. Clinical research coordinator

   Mid

   You run one or more studies at a site, from recruitment to close-out, and deal with sponsors and ethics committees.

3. Senior clinical research coordinator

   Senior

   You handle complex or high-risk trials, train new coordinators and act as the main contact for audits.

4. Clinical research manager

   Lead

   You lead a team of coordinators, plan resources across studies and answer for quality and compliance in the unit.

The titles are ones commonly used in Singapore; employers may name the levels differently.

Related jobs and their pay

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Clinical research coordinator interview questions

We wrote these questions from the skills this job needs. They are not an official question bank.

1. What is good clinical practice, and how does it show up in your daily work at a study site?

   What a good answer covers

   • Describes GCP as an ethical and scientific quality standard for trials
   • Links it to participant rights, safety and wellbeing
   • Gives examples: consent, protocol adherence, source documents, delegation logs, training records
   • Explains that accurate records make trial data credible

2. Walk me through how you take informed consent from a participant.

   What a good answer covers

   • Checks the approved version of the consent form is in use
   • Gives the participant time and a private space to read and ask questions
   • Confirms understanding in simple language, with an interpreter if needed
   • Collects signatures and dates correctly, and gives the participant a copy
   • Documents the process in the study file

3. What is the difference between an adverse event and a serious adverse event, and what do you do when one happens?

   What a good answer covers

   • Defines an adverse event as any unwanted medical event during the study
   • Names typical serious criteria such as death, hospitalisation or lasting disability
   • Tells the investigator promptly so they can assess severity and cause
   • Reports to the sponsor and ethics committee within the timelines in the protocol and rules
   • Follows up until the event is resolved or stable

4. What documents belong in an investigator site file, and how do you keep it audit-ready?

   What a good answer covers

   • Lists protocol versions, ethics approvals, signed consent forms, delegation log and training records
   • Keeps lab certificates, monitoring logs and safety reports filed
   • Files documents as they arrive instead of just before an audit
   • Checks version control and signatures regularly

5. How do you make sure the data in the case report form matches the source documents?

   What a good answer covers

   • Enters data soon after the visit, from the original record
   • Uses the attributable, legible, contemporaneous, original and accurate principles
   • Corrects errors with a clear audit trail and never overwrites silently
   • Clears monitor queries quickly and finds the cause of repeat queries

6. What do you track in a clinical trial management system, and how do you use it to run a study?

   What a good answer covers

   • Tracks enrolment numbers, visit schedules and study milestones
   • Records visit completion, monitoring visits and open actions
   • Uses it to manage payments, invoices and supplies where the system allows
   • Checks entries for accuracy and reports status to the investigator and sponsor

7. How would you build an Excel tracker for participant visit windows?

   What a good answer covers

   • Calculates the earliest and latest visit dates from the baseline date
   • Uses conditional formatting to flag visits due soon or overdue
   • Uses lookups and data validation to avoid entry errors
   • Uses study codes instead of names, and stores the file on an approved secure drive

8. What does an ethics committee review, and which changes to a study need its approval before you act?

   What a good answer covers

   • Explains that the committee protects participants and reviews risk, consent and study design
   • Names changes needing approval: protocol amendments, new consent versions, recruitment materials
   • Knows urgent safety measures may be taken first and reported straight after
   • Keeps approval letters and version numbers on file

1. A participant calls to say they cannot attend a visit within the protocol window. What do you do?

   What a good answer covers

   • Checks the exact window and what is at risk if the visit is late
   • Offers the closest date inside the window, including after-hours or home options if allowed
   • Tells the investigator if the visit cannot be held on time
   • Records the reason and logs a deviation if the window is missed
   • Looks for ways to prevent the same problem for other participants

2. Before a monitoring visit, you find that one signed consent form is missing a date. How do you handle it?

   What a good answer covers

   • Leaves the form as it is and never backdates or alters it
   • Tells the investigator and writes a dated note explaining what happened
   • Records it as a deviation if the protocol or rules require it
   • Checks other consent forms for the same problem
   • Tells the monitor about it openly and describes the fix

3. A participant mentions new chest pain during a follow-up call. What do you do?

   What a good answer covers

   • Asks about symptoms and judges urgency, and directs the person to emergency care if needed
   • Informs the investigator straight away
   • Records the event and its details in the source document
   • Starts safety reporting if the event qualifies
   • Follows up until the investigator confirms the outcome

1. Tell me about a time the investigator and the sponsor wanted different things from you at the same time.

   What a good answer covers

   • Describes the conflict clearly and who was involved
   • Checks the protocol and agreements before deciding priorities
   • Communicates early and keeps both sides informed
   • Reaches a result and states what you learned

2. Describe a mistake you made in a record or a data entry. How did you deal with it?

   What a good answer covers

   • Owns the mistake and takes responsibility
   • Corrects it using proper procedure and an audit trail
   • Tells the right people promptly
   • Adds a check or habit to prevent a repeat

1. How does the Personal Data Protection Act affect the way you handle participant information?

   What a good answer covers

   • Explains that personal data needs a lawful basis such as consent and must be protected
   • Uses study codes, limits access and keeps files on approved secure systems
   • Shares data with sponsors only as the consent form and protocol allow
   • Reports any loss or leak of data to the investigator and the organisation's data protection officer
   • Notes that hospital and institute policies add further rules

2. Which bodies are involved in overseeing clinical research in Singapore, and how does your site deal with them?

   What a good answer covers

   • Names the Health Sciences Authority for clinical trials of medicines and therapeutic products
   • Names institutional ethics review boards for study approval
   • Mentions the Human Biomedical Research Act, which MOH administers and which covers device trials and other human biomedical research
   • Explains how the site files approvals, amendments and safety reports
   • Says you would check current requirements with the research office

Common questions about a clinical research coordinator job

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