ICON and University College Dublin Launch Innovative Graduate Certificate in Clinical Research

ICON plc, (NASDAQ: ICLR) a global provider of outsourced development services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries, and the University College Dublin (UCD) School of Medicine & Medical Science today announced the launch of an innovative graduate certificate in clinical research that will enhance the quality of graduate training in clinical research and increase the pool of talent available to ICON to support their clients drug development programmes.

Available to life science graduates from September 2013, the 12-week programme combines industry-specific education and training with a parallel 12 week clinical-based internship in the UCD Clinical Research Centre at Dublin’s St Vincent’s and Mater Misericordiae University Hospitals. Education modules will include clinical trial management, data and project management, clinical research governance and ethics, and the clinical trial of the future.

Commenting on the launch, ICON’s CEO, Ciaran Murray, said: “ICON is a global leader in clinical research with over 10,000 employees worldwide and we are delighted to be collaborating with the UCD School of Medicine on this uniquely tailored programme to ensure that we develop the talent to support our future growth.”

Professor Patrick Murray, Dean of Medicine & Head, School of Medicine & Medical Science welcomed the collaboration with ICON noting: “this initiative further demonstrates the University’s growing links with industry. As Ireland’s leading academic clinical research facility, the UCD Clinical Research Centre has supported increasing numbers of investigator-led and industry-sponsored studies over the past six years. With more than 25,000 study-related patient contacts, the benefits to our patients are evident. Significant benefits to Ireland’s economy can also be realised as we train our graduates to conduct clinical and translational research to the highest international standards and prepare them for leadership roles within international clinical research organisations such as ICON.”