The SRA Symposium - College of Medicine

have been forced to pay close attention to the administration of research dollars and the fostering
of the research enterprise in general. It is reasonable to assume hiring the most knowledgeable
research administrators would be a high priority to universities. Since the vast majority of research
administrators enter the profession with little or no experience in the field, it should be extremely
important to employers to have high quality and comprehensive professional development opportunities
readily available for newcomers to the field.
Even though both CRAs and non-certified research administrators doubt the value of certification
in terms of increased job responsibility, promotions, and salary, CRAs report earning more money
on an annual basis than do their non-certified counterparts. The only exception is those earning
more than $80,000 annually. The majority of those earning more than $80,000 annually are not
certified, and it is concluded that those individuals do not feel they need to become certified.
In summary, a comprehensive certification program in the professional field of research administration
has strong potential to serve individuals, organizations, and sponsors of research in an
effective and positive way. In order to accomplish this, a comprehensive certification program
should be closely aligned with the two major professional organizations dedicated exclusively to
the professional field of research administration.
Recommendations for Future Research
Further research is suggested in the following areas:
Papers
1. It is recommended that a replication of this study be done in another region of the United
States to further validate the results.
2. It is recommended that a replication of this study be done on an international scale to further
validate the results.
3. It is recommended that research be conducted to determine if curriculum at the university
level should be developed in research administration management.
4. It is recommended that the primary professional organizations in support of research administration
engage in research to determine how many people are involved in the profession of
research administration to help make decisions in regard to continuing adult education.
5. It is recommended that research be conducted focusing on the employers of research administration
professionals to determine if they would value being served by a Certified Research
Administrator (CRA) through the Research Administrators Certification Council (RACC).
6. It is recommended that the primary professional organizations in support of research administration
engage in research about specific needs and preferences of their membership.
2005 Symposium Proceedings Book 231