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INTRODUCTION: Acquisition of research experience by medical students is associated with good research pathway at the postgraduate level and also in the pursuit of a research career. Also, it assists the physician to make evidence based decisions in clinical practice. OBJECTIVES: Aim of study was to determine the perception of research and predictors of research career among clinical medical students of Ebonyi State University Abakaliki,southeast Nigeria. METHODS: A descriptive cross sectional study design was used. All clinical medical students of Ebonyi State University who were willing to participate were included in the study. Information was obtained using a self administered questionnaire. RESULTS: A total of235students participated in the study, (response rate, 87.0%) .The mean age was 24.8±2.8 years and majority,61.3% were males. Majority,96.6% were of the opinion that research is important in the practice of Medicine, 66.4% opted for a mandatory research time in medical school and 18.3% agreed that students were encouraged to participate in research. A minor proportion,24.3% have ever participated in research apart from the mandatory student projects and 40.4% intend to pursue a career in research. Barriers to students' involvement in research included lack of funding,43.4%,lack of time,23.8% and lack of mentoring,22.1%.Predictors of research as a career among the students included being a male student, (AOR=2.1;95% CI:1.1-2.8), previous participation in research,(AOR=2.0;95% CI:1.1-5.8),and students that had career guidance,(AOR=3.7;95% CI:2.0-7.0), CONCLUSIONS: Majority of the students have a good perception of research. However only a minor proportion have participated in research and were willing to pursue a career in research. There is the need to encourage and motivate the students towards having interest in health research while also addressing the identified barriers. Career guidance should be institutionalized in our medical schools.

School-based research presents ethical challenges, especially with respect to informed consent. The manner in which pupils and their parents respond to an invitation to participate in research is likely to depend on several factors, including the level of trust between them and the researchers. This paper describes our recruitment and consent process for a school-based eye study in Nigeria. In the course of our study, a particular governmental incident helped to fuel public mistrust in governmental programs and posed a potential threat to our recruitment efforts. The recruitment and consent process included series of advocacy visits to stakeholders in the education sector, highly interactive briefing and health talk sessions in schools, use of telephone services as a medium for information dissemination, age-appropriate study information, parental consent, and pupil assent. Of the 6598 pupils provided with study information, 5723 returned parental consent forms. There were 69 cases of pupils who dissented despite having parental consent. The two leading concerns for the parents/guardians were the rumors regarding a military/governmental-sponsored health campaign and the side-effects of the dilating eye-drops. Nevertheless, our high level of recruitment suggests our recruitment and consent process was successful in assuaging fears for the vast majority of pupils and their parents.