The role of a Principal Investigator (P.I.) is ideal for physicians who want to gain experience in the conduct of clinical trials.

Overview of the role

Principal investigators oversee the conduct of clinical trials.

They attend to the health and safety of study participants, pay special attention to protocol adherence, data integrity, and ensure trials are executed according to Good Clinical Practice (GCP) and Human Subjects Protection (HSP) guidelines.

These positions are typically full-time, hybrid, or on-site. Part-Time or contract positions are less common.

Who are the employers?

Pharmaceutical companies, contract research organizations, academic research organizations, government research institutions (example, NIH), and contract research site organizations who specialize in managing clinical research sites.
There are also opportunities for physicians to enroll patients at their practice site. That physician becomes the P.I. for their site.

Typical responsibilities: *

• Responsible for the conduct of clinical trials according to the relevant standard operating procedures, GCP, and HSP guidelines.

• Ensure the safety of trial participants and maintain data integrity.

• Review study protocols and other documents relevant to the clinical trial.

• Perform a risk assessment to anticipate pitfalls and challenges that may occur during the trial.

• Conduct regular reviews of the screening, enrollment, and retention of study participants.

• Keep up to date in the relevant therapeutic area (T.A.)

• Collaborate with the company operations team to determine study site feasibility.

• Interact with external medical experts as needed.

• Provide protocol and TA training to staff at the trial site/s.

• Depending on the role, travel to other clinical trial sites may be required.

What kind of physician is a good fit for this role?

• You want to use your physician brain.
• You love to solve problems and think strategically.
• You are well-organized and efficient at managing concurrent projects and tasks.
• You have excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• You have strong presentation skills.
• You enjoy collaborating in a team to accomplish objectives.
• You are proficient in MS Office suite.

Qualification and Experience Requirements: *

MD or DO.

Active Medical License.

3-5 years clinical experience.

Bonus experience:
Sub-PI or PI experience in a clinical research setting. For some job postings, this will be a requirement so review the JD carefully.

Expertise in the relevant TA (either as a subspecialist or specific experience as a generalist).

Typical Compensation: *

If an MD or DO degree is required, the typical annual compensation ranges from ~USD 180K to ~USD 280K, sometimes higher if sub-specialty and/or PI experience is required.

If MD or DO are not required, the annual salary range is ~USD 100K-~USD 130K.

Tips to find out more about this role

1. Network!

Connect with physicians and other clinicians who transitioned to the role of P.I. Ask them for an informational interview.

2. Review job descriptions

Search LinkedIn jobs for “Principal Investigator.”

Tip #1
Search Principal Investigator AND clinical trial. You will find openings at clinical trial sites. To further narrow down your results to more entry level, check the “mid senior” level filter option.

Tip #2
LinkedIn searches for PI may also yield Principal Researcher and Principal Scientist roles. They are different roles.

If you’re interested in working for a particular pharmaceutical, CRO, or biotech company, search the company websites for opportunities.

Tips to become a competitive applicant.

1. Gain experience in the conduct of clinical trials.

Explore clinical trials.gov. All clinical trials are registered in this database.

• Search for trials in your geographic area, contact the trial P.I. and volunteer to help. This is a great way to learn about the clinical trial process: from enrolling patients to ethical guidelines, and safety issues.
• Search clinical trials in your area of clinical expertise/interest and consider enrolling patients from your practice. This will give you experience in recruiting participants, the informed consent process, and more. It’s also a great opportunity to expand your network.

2. Join a local Institutional Review Board to gain experience reviewing clinical trials.

3. Adapt your CV into a resume format.

In summary:

The P.I. oversees all aspects of the execution of clinical trials. If this role is of interest to you and you would like to get some experience, look for opportunities to volunteer, or find roles as a sub-PI where you can be mentored. Physicians who enjoy this role tend to stay, mentor new PI’s, and expand their responsibilities in site management.

* Responsibilities, required experience, qualifications, and typical compensation will vary depending on the employer and TA. Review job descriptions carefully.