Abstract B175: Addressing the urgent demand for clinical research professionals through a novel training initiative

Abstract Training and retaining diverse, qualified clinical research professionals that reflect the demographics of the community is pivotal to design inclusive clinical protocols, recruit underrepresented populations, and increase generalizability of scientific advancements. The University of Chicago's Comprehensive Cancer Center (UCCCC) and the Professional Education (UCPE) office job market analysis found an urgent and growing—and chronically unmet—demand for clinical research professionals across the United States. Nearly 6,930 employers nationwide had active clinical trials job postings from May 2023-2024. Illinois is among the top ten states with unique clinical research job postings. Further, internal UChicago analysis revealed high turnover in entry-level clinical research positions, highlighting a competitive job market for qualified individuals. As 60% of all clinical research activities at UChicago are cancer-focused, the UCCCC pursued novel strategies to diversify, grow, and retain the clinical research workforce. The overarching goal is to optimize pathways from undergraduate programs to clinical research careers. City Colleges of Chicago (CCC) and the UCCCC’s Clinical Trials Support Office (CTSO), Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and Office of Education are collaborating on a three-module Cancer Clinical Research Professionals (CCRP) Program to create new pathways into clinical research careers. The yearlong CCRP Program provides hands-on training and development opportunities to community college students interested in biomedicine via a 6-week summer internship, monthly academic year engagements, and a semester-long apprenticeship. The program expands CCC’s capacity to combine classroom learning with practical experience and professional opportunities, which are critical components of students’ education. It promotes career awareness, specialized skill development, and employment in cancer clinical research among CCC students, a diverse and highly motivated talent pool. The internship attracted 49 applicants in its first year. Out of 22 qualified applicants, 6 interns were selected and will begin their training in June 2024. Detailed findings from the internship evaluation will be available in September 2024. We expect the CCRP Program to be most students’ first experience with clinical research careers, greatly expanding their access to opportunities. Our evaluation will present lessons learned during the first year of the CCRP and plans to modify program components. Findings will also inform related training initiatives such as developing an Associate Degree in Clinical Research. We are confident that our forthcoming data will be of interest to other cancer centers and academic medical centers working to enhance their cancer clinical research workforce, which is essential for inclusive research and cancer health equity. Citation Format: Camilla Frost-Brewer, Aspen Ward, Lauren Wall, Megan Mekinda, Eileen Dolan, Jasmine Tiro, Matt Cohn. Addressing the urgent demand for clinical research professionals through a novel training initiative abstract. In: Proceedings of the 17th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2024 Sep 21-24; Los Angeles, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2024;33(9 Suppl):Abstract nr B175.