The Rochester Clinical Research Curriculum (RCRC) has developed a comprehensive program to provide clinical research trainees with the knowledge, methods, and skills to be successful clinical investigators. The overall goal of this proposed program is to further refine and expand the core competencies and educational objectives for clinical research training. The RCRC will build upon an excellent established curriculum of didactic coursework, a program of skill-building workshops to provide practical tools for contemporary clinical research, a Clinical Research Seminar Series, and mentored research experiences. The RCRC has successfully recruited 89 Scholars who have already shown considerable research productivity. On this solid foundation, clinical research at the University of Rochester has been reorganized and expanded. Five multidisciplinary research tracks (translational research; experimental therapeutics; population-based research; outcomes research; and ethics, law and policy) have been developed. Two new skill-building workshops are proposed: Recruitment and Retention of Research Subjects, and Research Program Administration. Three workshops (Ethical Conduct of Research, Grant Writing and Research Project Administration) will be provided online for sharing with clinical research partners. A Clinical Research Resource Inventory will be kept current for trainees to identify mentors and research resources. The mentored research experience will be improved by an online Mentor Development Course to improve the quality and quantity of clinical research mentors. Recruitment of Scholars will be expanded with collaboration with regional and national partners. The RCRC will simultaneously be evaluated for completion of learning objections, productivity of trainees during the training period and thereafter, and RCRC Scholars' career development. With these improvements the RCRC should be even more successful in training RCRC Scholars for successful careers in clinical research.
