Career Path Of A Senior Clinical Trial Coordinator At UCLA Health Hematology And Oncology
Cindy's career path, driven by a lifelong aspiration to be a physician, began with consistent volunteer work in hospitals and people-oriented research roles, including "being a lab assistant for cancer patients" and "clinical research assistant for breast cancer patients" during college. After graduation, a period of reflection led to a full-time transition into clinical research, where Cindy steadily advanced to their current senior position.
Career Exploration, Clinical Research, Healthcare, Leadership, Volunteering
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Cindy Tong
Sr. Clinical Trial Coordinator
UCLA Health, Hematology/Oncology
UCLA, 2017
UCLA FEMBA 2026
Biology & Related Sciences
Healthcare, Medical & Wellness
Research and Development (R&D)
Took Out Loans
Video Highlights
1. Cindy's lifelong aspiration to be a physician fueled her consistent pursuit of science-related opportunities from a young age.
2. Her college experiences involved direct patient interaction through roles as a lab assistant and clinical research assistant, solidifying her interest in the application of science to patient care.
3. After graduating, she transitioned into full-time clinical research, highlighting a career path progression from volunteer work to a senior position within the field.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path? Please start with your experiences in college, and any internships or jobs you had before your current role.
Pretty much my whole life, since I was 10 years old, I've always wanted to be a physician. I was always on the science path and even in high school, I was volunteering at the hospital.
When I got to college, I volunteered at the Ronald Reagan Hospital. I went to UCLA, and my focus was really on people-oriented research and opportunities.
In college, this included being a lab assistant for cancer patients and a clinical research assistant for breast cancer patients. I also pursued leadership opportunities to help underserved communities with health insurance. I wanted to see the application between science and what we could actually do in the field.
I wanted to understand how, directly from the bench to bedside, we could help people. That was kind of my focus. Once I graduated from college, I was very stuck on whether this was really a career for me.
There wasn't any reason to deviate from it, but I was really tired at that point. I had spent eight or nine years on one path, so I just wanted to take a little bit of a break, but still stay in science.
Then I switched over to clinical research full-time and worked my way up the ladder. That's where I am now.