Research scientist (medical) : Job description

Medical research scientists plan and conduct experiments to increase the body of scientific knowledge on topics related to medicine. They may also aim to develop new, or improve existing, drugs, treatments or other medically-related products.

Research may be basic, such as investigating the underlying basis of health and disease, or it may be more applied, like conducting clinical research, investigating methods of prevention, diagnosis and treatment of human disorders. Research may be carried out at a molecular level, using appropriate cell and animal models, or using human volunteers to study the clinical effects of various factors.

Typical work activities

Medical research takes place in higher education institutions, research institutes, hospitals and industry. The specifics of the role vary according to the setting, but much of the work is laboratory-based. Tasks typically include:

• planning and conducting experiments and analysing or interpreting the results;
• keeping accurate records of work undertaken;
• using specialist computer software to analyse data and to produce diagrammatic representation of results;
• teaching and supervising students (in higher education);
• writing and submitting applications and progress reports to funding bodies that support medical research (outside industry);
• discussing research progress with other departments, e.g. production and marketing (in industry);
• constantly considering the profit/loss potential of research products (in industry);
• collaborating with industry, research institutes, hospitals and academia.

Medical research scientists are also concerned with disseminating the results of their work to others. This includes:

• sharing the results of research with colleagues through presentations or discussions at team meetings;
• preparing presentations, and delivering these at national and international scientific conferences;
• writing original papers for publication in peer-reviewed medical or scientific journals. (In industry, there is usually less pressure to publish. There is also often a lag period for any publications due to intellectual property issues.)

Scientists also need to keep up-to-date with other research being carried out in, or related to, their field of study. Activities that enable them to stay in touch successfully with developments and advances in their field include:

• carrying out searches for information using the internet and information databases;
• reading relevant scientific literature and journals;
• attending scientific meetings and conferences in order to hear presentations from other researchers and participate in informal discussions with scientists from other parts of the world