Clinical Research Externship
Boost your research skills with hands-on experiences
Boost Your Career
Gain invaluable clinical research experience with a unique, hands-on educational experience with Dr. Jessie Hawkins, one of the worlds leading natural products researchers. While shadowing Dr. Hawkins, you will learn best practices for study design, implementation, and analysis while working on an active study. You'll also earn the right to authorship for publications that come from studies conducted during your externship.
Overview
Each externship at NRI is customized to meet your unique goals and objectives. During your time at NRI, you'll be on-site each day from 9AM-4PM completing experiences which cover the full range of clinical research activities.
The program is available as a 1-week or a 2-week program. Program fees are $1650 for 1-week programs or $2950 for 2-week programs. Note, 2-week programs are only available as two consecutive weeks. Each week includes 30 hours of hands-on education and experience.
Highlights
- Mentorship. You'll enjoy hands-on education under the direct supervision of an experienced mentor, ensuring that you fully master the skills covered.
- Comprehensive. Rotate among a variety of research-related skills throughout the research process, from materials receipt and management to manuscript development–and everything in-between.
- Proprietary Tools. Enjoy the unique experience of nutraceutical-specific endpoint selection and fit-for-purpose psychometric measures with access to the NRI measurement suite of outcomes.
- Diverse Network. Gain hands-on experience working with an interdisciplinary team of dietitians, nurses, psychologists, kinesiologists, and clinical research experts.
- Publications. Your involvement earns you authorship in publications which are developed from projects for which you were involved.
- Certificate. After the 1-2 week program, you'll be awarded a certificate of completion highlighting your accomplishment.
Qualifications
The program is open to professionals from a wide range of backgrounds, including:- Allied Health Professionals
- Public Health Professionals
- Aspiring Researchers
- Advanced Students in a Clinical or Research-Related Field
- Statisticians
- Chemists
Note: International participants must also secure a visa for the duration of the externship, if an on-site option is selected.
Frequently Asked Questions
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What does a typical week of an externship entail?
Each week of the program includes 30 hours of hands-on experiences, many of which are 1:1 with Dr. Hawkins and her team. While each week involves a different combination of tasks depending on NRI's current studies, an average week involves:
6-8 hours of in-office education. During this time, you'll join Dr. Hawkins and the research team at the conference table to develop study protocols. Dr. Hawkins will ensure you are trained in not only the best practices for study design but the "why" for each decision that is made.
12-16 hours of study administration. This includes investigational product organization, participant randomization and group assignment, participation kit creation, study blinding, data cleaning, statistical analysis, and more. This is the nuts-and-bolts part of scientific research.
6-12 hours of participant involvement. During this time you'll directly be involved in participant screening, informed consent procedures, document auditing and storage, data collection, and more.
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Will I earn USCE (US Clinical Experience)
If you are an International Medical Graduate (IME), you can earn valuable experience within the specialization of clinical research. However, NRI is exclusively focused on natural products research and the overwhelming majority of our studies are conducted on healthy participants. Therefore, there are not opportunities for clinical rotations, hospital experience, or discovering the intricacies of the US healthcare system.
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Does the program sponsor for a visa?
The program does not currently sponsor for a visa.
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Where is NRI located and do you offer lodgings and food?
NRI is located in downtown Huntsville Alabama, approximately 10 minutes from the Huntsville airport.
During your externship, breakfast and lunch are included each day. Evening meals and nightly accommodations can be found at many nearby locations; there are multiple hotels and restaurants within a 2-3 block radius.
We recommend flying into Huntsville on a Sunday evening to ensure you are settled before the program begins Monday morning.
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How many people participate in an externship?
Your experience is a priority for us. Therefore, we do not book more than 2 learners at a time.
We reserve one of these spots for local college interns, leaving one spot available for externships.
During many weeks, you will be the only learner on site, ensuring maximum participation opportunity and ample 1-on-1 experience with Dr. Hawkins.
Apply Now
Click below to email NRI about scheduling an externship.