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Combining a professional role as a health clinician with one in research.



Clinical research

Early-mid career

Paz is an MRC Clinician Scientist and Clinical Senior Lecturer at the National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London. She is also a Consultant Cardiologist (clinical doctor) in inherited cardiac conditions at the Royal Brompton Hospital, London. 

"The autonomy and creativity to think about the bigger picture is what I enjoy most about research. In clinical medicine, we are rightly focussed on the patient right in front of us and how can we make that patient better. In research, we can think about how to make things better for all patients, and that’s really special."

Paz grew up in Sunderland in the North East of England. Her parents were the first in their family to go to University. She is now a very busy mum to 3 young children and she works full time, combining a clinical and academic career. 

She graduated from the University of Oxford with Merit. In 2014 she was awarded an MRC (Medical Research Council) Clinical Research Training Fellowship to do a PhD at Imperial College in the genetic and phenotypic assessment of dilated cardiomyopathy. This work was awarded the National Heart Lung Institute Best Thesis Prize in 2018. 

After completing her PhD, she wanted to stay in academic medicine so continued in the department as a Clinical Lecturer, and most recently, she was awarded a major grant from the MRC to study why there are differences between male and female patients with dilated cardiomyopathy. As an academic cardiologist, she continues to focus on research into cardiomyopathy as well as continuing her clinical practice looking after patients with cardiomyopathy.  

"Don’t be afraid of failure. It’s part and parcel of a research career. Talent will only get you so far, it’s your resilience that will take you to the top. When you see successful people, don’t for a minute think they haven’t failed along the way. So don’t be scared, ask for help, and find your tribe to support you along the way"


Paz (Upasana) Tayal

Clinical Lecturers are healthcare professionals who continue their clinical practice while also developing as researchers. These positions are essentially the equivalent of Postdoctoral Researcher or Research Fellow roles within the Research pathway, for those who wish to remain partly as a clinical medical or health professional rather than working purely in research.

## Overview 

Key skills: 

- A [ Higher Degree ^ Postgraduate Degree ] ([ PhD ^ PhD ]/[ DPhil ^ DPhil ]/[ MD ^ MD ]) in a relevant [ field ^ Field ] 
- [ GMC (General Medical Council) ^ General Medical Council ] registration 
- Established [ record of research ^ Research Profile ] 
- Ongoing [ clinical practice ^ Clinical Practice ] with strong commitment to patient care
- [ Undergraduate ^ Undergraduate ] or [ Postgraduate ^ Postgraduate ] teaching experience
- Ability to work efficiently in a [ multidisciplinary ^ Multidisciplinary ] team 

**Typical job titles:** Clinical Lecturer, Clinical Scientist, Clinical Teaching Fellow, Clinical Researcher, Clinical Research Fellow

Clinical Lecturers and Clinical Scientists are healthcare professionals who continue their clinical practice while also developing as researchers.

The Clinical Lectureship is an award scheme funded by Health Education England or the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) within their Clinical Academic Pathway and Integrated Academic Training Programmes, respectively. These are aimed at various types of health professional who wish to undertake [ postdoctoral ^ Postdoctoral ] research. The schemes allow the health professional to do this while continuing to be employed as a clinician. Once the scheme is completed, participants may remain in clinical practice if they choose.

In addition to Clinical Lectureships, Clinician Scientist awards provide similar positions through the NIHR scheme. Other forms of clinical researcher are similar, but may be funded in a different way and are not part of these specific frameworks. 

These positions are essentially the equivalent of a [Postdoctoral Researcher](https://stem-prod.royalsociety.org/career-profiles/postdoctoral-researcher) or [Research Fellow](https://stem-prod.royalsociety.org/career-profiles/research-fellow) role within the research pathway, for those who wish to continue to be a medical or health professional rather than working purely in research.



Overview

## Salary 

The current annual salary range for postdoctoral researchers is broadly £38,000-45,000 (excluding London weightings).

Many earn over £40,000 per year but the range is quite wide as it reflects the different levels of responsibility and experience required for different positions.

Salary

## Population

There are thought to be around 200 Clinical [ Lectureship ^ Lectureship ] awards per year in England, of which around 100 are reserved for those who are medical doctors, and the remaining 100 for other healthcare professionals.

Population

## Career stage

As noted above, these are early- to mid-career roles, typically undertaken at about the same career stage as a [Research Fellow](https://yourstemcareerpath.royalsociety.org/career-profiles#/research,early-mid-career) on a university research pathway.

Career stage

## Role and responsibilities

As these positions are broadly in line with [Research Fellows](https://yourstemcareerpath.royalsociety.org/career-profiles#/research,early-mid-career), the research-related activities of the position will be similar to those listed for that role. In addition, a professional [ clinical ^ Clinical ] role continues on a part-time basis, so some of those duties remain too.

Many of the core research activities will use and build upon the research skills developed during [ doctoral research ^ Doctoral Research ] and [ postdoctoral ^ Postdoctoral ] research positions:

- Coming up with ideas for research and developing [ research proposals ^ Research Proposal ] and securing funding for them.
- Acting as a [ principal investigator ^ Principal Investigator ] or [ co-investigator ^ Co-Investigator ] for a research project.
- Managing, planning and conducting that research, which could mean operating complex instruments and equipment.
- Taking responsibility for the integrity and ethical conduct of the research.
- Processing and analysing results and interpreting outcomes from the research.
- Communicating findings to the [ academic ^ Academic ]/scientific community, by writing [ journal ^ Journal ] [ papers ^ Paper ] and presenting [ conference ^ Conference ] papers, plus giving other presentations and writing reports for [ funders ^ Funder ] or potential research users.
- Keeping up to date with the work of others (for example by reading journals and attending conferences) and learning new techniques and skills.
- Contributing to the generation of scientific knowledge, and to the sharing of this knowledge with internal and external professional networks.
- Conducting [ public engagement ^ Public Engagement ] or [ outreach ^ Outreach ] activities to the wider public and community.

Managing people and resources will also be a part of the role as a research leader, with responsibilities such as:

- Acting as team leader.
- Mentoring or coaching colleagues with less experience.
- Supervising their work or their doctoral research.
- Coordination of research with other researchers.
- Planning the resourcing for projects, managing the project and its budget.

Role and responsibilities

## Qualifications

These schemes are open to health professionals who have a [ doctoral ^ Doctoral ] qualification (such as a [ PhD ^ PhD ]) and some years of experience of [ clinical practice ^ Clinical Practice ]. Those that have both research and [ clinical ^ Clinical ] experience and training. 

It is necessary for the individual to have an employment contract with the host employer for the duration of the [ Lectureship ^ Lectureship ] – these posts are [ co-funded ^ Co-funded ] by the employer and Health Education England, with the employer contributing at least half. 


Qualifications

## Progression 

The next step in the Clinical Academic Pathway for healthcare professionals in England is [Senior Clinical Lecturer](https://yourstemcareerpath.royalsociety.org/career-profiles#/clinical-research,mid-career). The most senior role in this pathway is a [Clinical Research Professor](https://yourstemcareerpath.royalsociety.org/career-profiles#/clinical-research,late-career). 

Progression

Clinical Lecturer

Home

Career pathways

Career profiles

Postdoctoral Research Assistant 

Postdoctoral Researcher

Research Fellow

Research Professor

Graduate Teaching Assistant 

Lecturer

Associate Professor

Professor

Research Scientist

Assistant Technician

Technician

Clinical Doctoral Fellow

Case studies

Changing sectors

STEM 101

Further Resources

Qualification profiles:

Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees

Doctoral research (including PhD)

rule

Support for:

Disabled scientists

Scientists from ethnic minority backgrounds

Women in STEM

LGBTQ+ scientists

Next steps

Fellowship schemes

Researcher development framework

Useful links

Glossary

About

The pathways shown are intended to be illustrative, and do not represent an exhaustive picture of STEM careers or routes through them. Role titles are not standardised across all institutions, so when looking at roles it is important to be aware of what the role actually entails, rather than going by title alone.

Salary information was developed in 2022/2023 and is subject to change with time.