Essentials of Clinical Research Course

The Essentials of Clinical Research course is designed for Stanford and CTSA-affiliated faculty and staff engaged in clinical research and consists of 10 sessions.

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Overview

This course provides an overview of basic principles of clinical research design, including biostatistics; study design and interpretation of diagnostic and predictive test studies; and required and desired elements of clinical trial protocols. Participants will be introduced to the regulatory aspects of clinical research conduct and oversight, Good Clinical Practice (GCP) principles, and ethical dimensions of clinical research.

Course Details

The course will be held online for 10 consecutive Thursdays from 4:00 – 6:00 pm PST beginning January 8, 2026, and concluding on March 12, 2026. Participants are expected to attend all sessions and may be dropped from the course if there are more than 3 absences. To receive a course completion certificate, knowledge quizzes and evaluations must be completed. This course offers Continuing Medical Education (CME) credit.

The course is offered on-demand from May until December. The information is for learning purposes only. An evaluation is requested at the end of the course. A certificate of completion is not available with the on-demand option.

ESSENTIALS OF CLINICAL RESEARCH COURSE SYLLABUS

Faculty Director

Steve Goodman, MD, MHS, PhD
Professor (Epidemiology and Population Health)
Associate Dean of Clinical and Translational Research

Certificate of Completion (Live Course)

A Certificate of Completion is available to those who meet the following requirements:

Attend a minimum of 8 sessions
Complete a minimum of 8 session evaluations
Take post-course knowledge assessment

Sessions are taught by Stanford faculty and staff who are experts in the field of clinical research.

Upon course completion, attendees will have an understanding of how to:

Design and analyze clinical research protocols.
Comply with “Good Clinical Practice” guidelines for study conduct, data management, and relevant regulations.
Apply the principles and practices underlying ethical and reproducible research.

If you have any questions, please contact Research Office Training