department of - etma

Department of Mathematics and Statistics

http://www.american.edu/cas/mathstat/ms-biostatistics.cfm

Professional Science Master’s Program in Biostatistics

Health Policy Track

Computational Track

Management Track

[email protected] Protein: courtesy of Władek Minor, UVA

Contact us at:

Specialty Tracks:

Professional Science Master’s (PSM) in Biostatistics In accordance with the goals of the America COMPETES Act and National Research Council of the National Academies, the PSM in Biostatistics degree is a distinctive Master of Science degree designed to prepare students for direct entry into a variety of career opportunities in industry, business, or non-profit organizations in health and medical fields. It combines rigorous study in the science of biostatistics with coursework in workforce skills such as project management, communication, policy development and entrepreneurship.

Six Important Reasons to Apply for the Program

Our three-track program is the only PSM in Biostatistics program in the country offering a Health Policy Track while also offering Computational and Management Tracks.

A unique combination of courses in Statistics, Biology, Public Healthcare, Big Data Analysis, Scientific Computing and Management/Business will prepare you for a rewarding career as a biostatistician in the medical and health sciences, pharmaceutical industries, and public and international health services.

You will be introduced to the fascinating field of biostatistics research and publishing under the careful and supportive guidance of our accomplished professors.

You will be surrounded by a vibrant international group of students, like you, on our beautiful campus located in Washington D.C. , the heart of American science, business, and culture.

As an American University Professional Master’s student you will have many diverse opportunities for biostatistics internships, summer jobs, and permanent jobs after graduation in numerous public and private institutions.

Public and private institutions in the United States and around the world are constantly - and often desperately - seeking competent health-oriented Professional Science Biostatisticians, often offering high rates of compensation for such positions.

Program Schedule and Choices

You can start the program in a spring semester or fall semester.

You can be a full-time student (4 semesters + 1 summer) or a part-time student (4 semesters + 3 summers or 5 semesters + 2 summers).

You can work while studying. Most classes are offered late afternoon or evening.

While receiving a strong education in Biostatistics you have a choice of one of three specializations by selecting the Health Policy Track, Computational Track, or Management Track.

To complete your Capstone Experiential, in addition to Internship you can choose a Research Project and/or Consulting.

Admission to the Program In addition to meeting the minimum university requirements for graduate study, applicants are required to have:

an adequate background in the mathematical sciences, equivalent to differential, integral, and multivariate calculus, Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores, a cumulative undergraduate grade point average of at least 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale).

Specific courses needed to prepare for entering the program will be identified through interviews with the applicant.

Professional Science Master’s in Biostatistics

Degree Requirements Students are required to

complete 33 credit hours of approved graduate work, gain Capstone Experience (6 credit hours in 600-level or above courses as approved by a faculty advisor, with grades of B or better), participate in noncredit workshops and seminars on professional skills and current issues in science and technology, demonstrate proficiency in the areas of study as part of the capstone project, internship, and compulsory presentation.

Professional Science Master’s in Biostatistics

Course Requirements Core Courses (12 credits) STAT-615 Regression (3) STAT-630 Mathematical Statistics I (3) STAT-631 Mathematical Statistics II (3) STAT-622 Advanced Biostatistics (3)

PSM in Biostatistics

Capstone Experience (6 credits) Complete 3 to 6 credit hours from the following:

PSM-691 Internship (3-6)

Complete the remaining credit hours from the following:

PSM-690 Independent Study in Professional Science (1-6)

STAT-798 Statistical Research and Consulting (1)

Course Requirements (continued)



Statistics Electives (3 credits)

Complete 3 credit hours from the following:

STAT-516 Design of Experiments (3)

STAT-517 Special Topics in Statistical Methodology (3)

STAT-519 Nonparametric Statistics (3)

STAT-520 Applied Multivariate Analysis (3)

STAT-521 Analysis of Categorical Data (3)

STAT-522 Time-Series Analysis (3)

STAT-584 Introduction to Stochastic Processes (3)

STAT-605 Introduction to Survey Sampling (3)

STAT-616 Generalized Linear Models (3)

STAT-624 Data Analysis (3)


Biology Electives (3 credits)


BIO-685 Bioinformatics (3)

BIO-687 Genomics (3)

BIO-689 Biotechnology (3)



Program Tracks (9 credits) Complete one of the following tracks:

Health Policy Track

Management Track

Computational Track



PSM in Biostatistics Course Requirements (continued) Health Policy Track (9 credits)


PUAD-685 Topics in Policy and Analysis Management (1-3)

SIS-635 Advanced Topics in Development Management (3)


COMM-580 Strategic Health Communication (3)

ENVS-665 Environmental Risk Assessment (3)

HPRM-575 Global Health (3)

HPRM-585 Global Health Policy (3)

HPRM-661 Health Promotion in Healthcare (3)

HPRM-680 Health Policy and Behavior Change (3)

PUAD-604 Public Program Evaluation (3)

PUAD-696 Selected Topics: Non-Recurring (1-6) (Approved topic)

SIS-624 Children in International Development (3)

SIS-626 Social Policy and Development (3)

SIS-628 Advanced Topics in International Communication (1-3)



Computational Track (9 credits) Complete 3 credit hours from the following:

ITEC-616 Management Information Systems (3)

ITEC-620 Business Insights through Analytics (3)


CSC-589 Topics in Computer Science (3) (Approved topic)

CSC-610 Introduction to Geographic Information Systems (3)

ITEC-660 Business Intelligence (3)

ITEC-670 Database and Big Data (3)

MATH-665 Numerical Analysis: Basic Problems (3)

MATH-661 Tools of Scientific Computing (3)

SIS-646 Information Systems and International Communication (3)

STAT-625 Statistical Software (3)



Management Track (9 credits) Complete 9 credit hours from the following:

ACCT-600 Ethics in Business and Accounting (3)

COMM-543 Speechwriting (3)

FIN-630 Financial Analysis of the Firm:

Concepts and Applications (3)

ITEC-616 Management Information Systems (3)

ITEC-620 Business Insights through Analytics (3)

ITEC-660 Business Intelligence (3)

MKTG-612 Marketing Management (3)

PUAD-685 Topics in Policy and Analysis Management (1-3)

SIS-628 Advanced Topics in International Communication (1-3)

SIS-635 Advanced Topics in Development Management (3)

SIS-646 Information Systems and International Communication (3)

Study with us

Graduate with us

Celebrate with us

How to Apply for the Program?

You can start the program in a spring semester or fall semester. Applications for the program will be collected online.

To start your application go to http://www.american.edu/cas/mathstat/ms-biostatistics.cfm

or to http://www.american.edu/cas/admissions/apply.cfm and select Apply Online.

Applications are reviewed year-round on a rolling basis,

for fall and spring enrollments.

Early applicants increase their chance to be awarded with a partial tuition remission.

Program Director’s contact: [email protected]

Meet your Biostatistics Professors

Michael Baron conducts research in the theory and methodology of sequential analysis and optimal sequential designs. This field concerns any statistical analysis performed on the data collected sequentially, one observation after another, as it happens, for example, in sequential clinical trials. At any time during the experiment, it is decided whether to continue sampling or stop collecting data and

report results. Baron’s contribution is in the development of sequential statistical procedures that attain the desired accuracy and minimize the expected sampling cost under these constraints. His latest research in this regard concerns simultaneous inferences and multiple comparisons in sequential experiments, with main application in clinical trials.

An important direction of sequential analysis is called change-point detection. It covers a wide range of problems with a goal detecting sudden changes in distributions of sequentially collected data. In his research, Baron derives the optimal detection stopping rules that achieve the best balance between the detection delay and the rate of false alarms. His work in this area is both theoretical and applied. One of his main applications is in epidemiology, where prompt change detection helps identify a pre-epidemic trend and predict an epidemic.

Baron often works with doctors and sometimes participates in clinical trials such as a recent trial of Prometa, a treatment program that helps chronic drug addicts reduce their craving and quit drugs. Recently, by studying change-point in times to relapse, it was discovered that Prometa patients have to stay sober for two weeks after the treatment – and then their probability of going back to drugs reduces drastically.

http://www.american.edu/cas/faculty/baron.cfm

https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=LVu0QOUAAAAJ&hl=en

http://www.american.edu/cas/faculty/baron.cfm

Kristina Crona’s research area is mathematical evolutionary biology, with focus on adaptation. One application is antimicrobial drug resistance, where the goal is to predict, prevent and manage drug resistance problems. Development of antibiotic resistance and HIV drug resistance depend on several mutations. Several mutations are also involved when pathogens cross the species barrier, for instance from

bats (Ebola) or birds (bird flu) to humans. Darwinian processes of practical importance tend to be complex because of gene interactions. A current project concerns higher order gene interactions and implications for recombination. She applies discrete mathematics, including graphs and triangulations of polytopes to fitness landscapes, and use algebraic methods, such as polynomials and Grobner bases for analyzing discrete structures.

http://www.american.edu/cas/faculty/kcrona.cfm



Monica Jackson’s current research interest is in the areas of spatial statistics and disease surveillance with applications to developing, investigating methods for detecting cancer clusters, global clustering patterns, and developing simulation algorithms for spatially correlated data. As she writes about her research:

“As a spatial statistician, I have expertise in developing spatial models for detecting clustering trends in geographic data. I developed similar models to investigate cancer trends in the U.S. My previous experience and specialization with these types of data has been proven through numerous publications in this field. I have shown rural/urban differences in mammography screening rates in California. This research is important as decisions are made on where to locate screening facilities.

http://www.american.edu/cas/faculty/monica.cfm

I investigated malaria rates in West Africa to determine if global warming were changing the mortality rates associate with Malaria rates. I also examined the patterns of care and survival of African-American, Hispanic and Non-Hispanic white patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I found that differences in primary tumor size, cancer stage and insurance status were contributing factors in whether patients of different ethnicities/races received surgery, but did not explain differences in the receipt of chemotherapy for some groups. In 2012 I received the Morton Bender Prize for outstanding research by an Associate Professor at American University. I have also spent sabbaticals at the National Cancer Institutes, the Institute for Pure and Applied Mathematics at UCLA and at the Statistical and Applied Mathematical Sciences Institute where I worked on applying my spatial techniques to a wide variety of medical problems.”

https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=QFBtbjsAAAAJ&hl=en


For Betty Malloy, promoting progressive public health policy is a matter of numbers. "As a statistician, I get to participate in some projects that ask big questions in terms of getting at the health impacts of occupational and/or environmental exposures on individuals," she says.

Malloy is currently developing statistical models for two projects that examine environmental effects on health. In one study, she is working with Ellen Eisen of UC-Berkeley on a disease pattern study that examines the effects of auto plant chemicals on over 46,000 General Motors workers during a span of nearly seven decades. The study is sponsored by GM and the United Auto Workers, and by a grant from the National Cancer Institute.

http://www.american.edu/cas/faculty/malloy.cfm

By modeling the relationships between exposure to these chemicals and instances of various cancers, Malloy has demonstrated a connection between high exposure and increased relative risk of these diseases. Findings to date have been published in Occupational and Environmental Medicine, International Journal of Biostatistics and Computational Statistics and Data Analysis.

Malloy is also working with Harvard biostatistician Brent Coull on a study examining the effects of air pollution on heart rate and nitric oxide levels in the blood. Sponsored by the National Institutes of Health and the Environmental Protection Agency, the study involves 45 individuals who went on multiple field trips from a suburban environment into St. Louis. By examining information collected from breath analyses, blood samples, and heart rate variation in each participant, the team is examining associations between increased pollution exposure and increased heart rates and nitric oxide levels. The information derived from the breath analyses and blood work has been published in the journal Biostatistics. Malloy is currently working on examining the heart rate data—which was taken over the course of the participants' excursions— and its association with pollution exposure.


Maria Pospieszalska Program Director: Professional Science Masters in Biostatistics

Pospieszalska currently conducts research in mathematical and stochastic modeling of biophysical processes occurring in blood such as leukocyte recruitment to sites of inflammation, kinetics of cell rolling in shear flow, adhesion molecules interaction, cell membrane protrusion/tether/sling formation, and atherosclerosis plaque accumulation and behavior.

Pospieszalska predicted and described (Biophysical Journal 100:1697-1707, 2011) a new bio-material, which she named nonlinearly decaying spring viscoelastic (NLDs-viscoelastic material). A few months later a La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology experimental group, she cooperates with, observed - for the first time - the tether phenomenon consistent with the predictions of her mathematical model.

The NLDs-viscoelastic properties of the molecular bonds explain why the blood cells are able to adhere to artery walls in spite of a very high shear rate under which the blood flows. The paper (Nature 488: 399-403, 2012) she coauthored was selected as an Editor's Choice of Academic Journal with comments such as by Shu Chien, UC San Diego: “These findings not only have fundamental importance in the mechanobiology of the cell, but also in understanding the pathophysiology of many disease states.”, or by Sussan Nourshargh, WHRI, London School of Medicine “This is a completely new cellular concept that will now be added as an additional step to the leukocyte adhesion cascade that describes the sequential cellular responses involved in guiding neutrophils to sites of inflammation. This pioneering work will without doubt pave the way for other researchers to explore the occurrence of "slings" in a wide range of inflammation scenarios."

Pospieszalska has published in other journals such as Molecular Immunology, Biorheology, Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering, Microcirculation, Icarus, Journal of Geophysical Research, Physical Review, and Mathematical Models and Methods in Applied Statistics. She has written two book chapters on modeling cellular rolling and adhesion in Current Topics in Membranes and in Methods in Enzymology.

https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=MVecizEAAAAJ&hl=en

http://www.pospieszalska.phpnet.org/M_Pospieszalska/Recent%20Papers_Abstracts.pdf

….. and your Statistics Professors

Mary Gray John Nolan

http://www.american.edu /cas/faculty/mgray.cfm

http://www.american.edu /cas/faculty/jpnolan.cfm

http://www.american.edu/







Robert Jernigan

http://www.american.edu/cas/faculty/jernigan.cfm

Alexandra Kapatou

http://www.american.edu/cas/faculty/kapatou.cfm


Jun Lu

http://www.american.edu/cas/faculty/lu.cfm

Julia Chifman

http://www.american.edu/cas/faculty/chifman.cfm

Department of Mathematics and Statistics

Joshua Lansky

http://www.american.edu/cas/faculty/lansky.cfm

Department Chair

Visit us at https://www.facebook.com/American-University-Department -of-Mathematics-and-Statistics-1232217223460924/timeline

https://www.facebook.com/



American University Graduate Student Resources

Housing for graduate/professional students:

American University Housing & Dining Programs provides off-campus housing resources to assist with your search for housing within the DC metro area.

Online Housing Resources: Hotpads.com Forrent.com Craigslist Hillzoo.com Housing HousingList.com Washington Post Apartment Showcase Apartment Guide ApartmentList.com Zillow.com JustRentToOwn.com JustRentToOwn.StudentGuide

http://hotpads.com/DC/Washington

http://www.forrent.com/

http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/

http://hillzoo.com/category/housing/

http://www.housinglist.com/

http://www.apartmentshowcase.com/

http://www.apartmentguide.com/apartments/District-of-Columbia/Washington/

http://www.apartmentlist.com/dc/washington

http://www.zillow.com/washington-dc/rent

http://www.justrenttoown.com/

http://www.justrenttoown.com/blog/category/student-guide/

Getting Around DC:

American University Shuttle Bus From the Tenleytown/AU Metrorail red line east exit, simply walk straight ahead 100 feet to the bus stops at the corner of Albemarle and 40th Streets. Both shuttle bus routes – Main Campus and Law School – lead to the main campus and Katzen Arts Center.

Metrorail (Red Line) & AU Shuttle Bus American University shares a Red Line stop with the DC neighborhood, Tenleytown.

The American University Metrorail stop is only two stops from Bethesda, four stops from Dupont Circle, and 6 stops from Metro Center.

Metrobus Routes N3, N4, N6, N8 pass AU on Massachusetts Avenue M4 and N2 pass AU on Nebraska Avenue at Ward Circle

More information on DC transportation for American University students: http://www.american.edu/provost/grad/living.cfm


On-Campus Student Resources:

Academic Support and Access Center The Academic Support and Access Center (ASAC) supports the academic development and educational goals of all American University students and is committed to providing access for individuals with disabilities within the university's diverse community.

Career Center All students have the ability to schedule an appointment with a career advisor, who

will assist with networking, interviews, resume and cover letter preparation, and job searching. Office of Merit Awards

Advisors in the Office of Merit Awards help students to identify appropriate nationally competitive, merit-based scholarships and partner with faculty to assist with the application process.


On-Campus Student Resources

Writing Center Writing Consultants help students with interpreting a writing assignment, generating ideas, organizing ideas and research, developing logical arguments, finding strategies for revising, and identifying recurrent errors. Center for Teaching, Researching, and Learning Lab The CTRL Lab is staffed by consultants, who can provide drop-in support for specialized statistical software such as SPSS, SAS, and STATA, as well as qualitative software such as NVivo. Consultants can also assist with research design, data management, interpreting statistical results, and other research-related tasks. Professional Communications Center The Kogod Center for Professional Communications service provides help with presentations and public speaking. Help with business and workplace writing— including reports, memos, emails, and cover letters—is provided for every stage from first draft through revisions and on to the polished final product.


On-Campus Student Resources

University Library Reference Desk Reference Librarians assist students and scholars through the research process. This includes helping students locate the best available sources for their projects and papers and providing guidance on research strategies. Technology Support Desk This service from the Office of Information Technology offers students, faculty, and staff convenient, easy access to professional technology assistance. Technology Support Engineers provide assistance with a wide range of issues, from internet connectivity to virus removal to system restoration.


Learn how you can make the difference in people lives

Join our vibrant community of professors and students at American University!

Biostatistician Occupational

Outlook

by Grant Conway

Biostatistics in Our

Everyday Life

Everyday, the news media reports on new research findings

concerning human health.

- New associations found between symptoms and

diseases,

- Improved outcomes of a new treatment, and

- Potential dangers of a behavior or substance.

This research involves the work of multidisciplinary teams

of researchers, including physicians, nurses, public health

officials, environmental health specialists, and

biostatisticians.


Everyday Life

“Patients Do Better After Surgery

If They Do ‘Prehab’ First”

National Public Radio

October 29, 2014

- McGill University biostatisticians

studied 77 patients scheduled for

a colorectal cancer surgery.

- Half of the group received the

- placebo by starting the program

after their surgery.

- Other half received the treatment

by beginning the program 25 days

before their surgery.


Everyday Life

“Patients Do Better After Surgery If They Do ‘Prehab’ First”

- By testing patients on how far they could walk in 6 minutes

following the surgery, biostatisticians found that the group

receiving the treatment preformed better.

- The treatment group, who received the prehabilitation, walked

an average of 23.7 meters father than the control group.

- Results of the study were clinically and statistically significant

as it exceeded 20 meters.

- In collaboration with other studies, this research has helped to

develop a model of cancer prehabilitation.

What Is the Role of

Biostatisticians? In studies like, “Prehabilitation versus Rehabilitation: A

Randomized Control Trial in Patients Undergoing Colorectal

Resection for Cancer,”

Biostatisticians collaborate with other researchers to:

- identify the best approach to data gathering given the

question that the study seeks to answer,

- calculate the needed sample size,

- formulate data collection methods,

- use statistical software to increase the workability of raw

data,

- employ statistical tests and terms to conclude the

study’s findings and significance, and

- convert data into useful information and graphical

representations for all consumers of information.

Biostatisticians’

Areas of Study Biostatisticians can work on a myriad of research problems

and questions:

- Factors affecting heart and lung disease

- Testing new drugs to combat AIDS

- Assessing indoor air quality in schools

- Evaluating dental health and dental procedures

- How do doctors deal with time pressures to see more

patients per day in different health care systems?

- Do doctors differently diagnose coronary heart disease

by gender, even when the signs presented are exactly

the same?

Where Do Biostatisticians

Work?

1. Academics

- Public Health, Nursing, Statistics Schools

2. Government

- CDC, FDA, VA

3. Hospitals/Non-Profits

- Gates Foundation, Massachusetts General Hospital

4. Pharmaceuticals and Contract Research Organizations

- Quintiles, Parexel, Covance, INC Research

We will focus on the last three types of employers because they

employ more biostatisticians with master’s degrees.

Biostatistician

Career Outlook While the Bureau of Labor Statistics does not specifically

collect employment information on biostatisticians, there is

a positive outlook for statisticians with greater advancement

opportunities and growth rate of 27% from 2012 to 2022.

Biostatisticians

in Federal Government

- The government continues to work on programs that

enhance data, its availability to the public, and its ability

to drive data-driven reform.

- With these reforms, biostatisticians will play an

instrumental role. These demands for change in health

care will create a demand for biostatisticians and their

expertise.

- The Department of Health and Human Services and

National Institutes of Health are major employers of

biostatisticians and annually conduct more than 38,000

biology and public health related projects.

Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention - Biostatistics and

Information Management

Office

• CDC's lead group for

statistical expertise for

investigations into

foodborne, waterborne,

and environmental disease

outbreaks, research

studies, and surveillance

data analyses.

• One major project is the

collection of data through

PHLIS (the Public Health

Laboratory Information

System).

Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention - Sample Profession: Health Scientist

• Professional Science Master’s Degree in Biostatistics would

satisfy its qualifications. • Some duties include:

(1) Analyze

epidemiologic

investigation data

utilizing new

methodologies or

existing techniques

that have been

extensively revised;

• (2) Conduct major

statistical studies or

continuing projects

as part of its

investigative

program.

Biostatisticians

in the Private Sector

- The majority of biostatisticians work in pharmaceutical and

health care companies.

- Pharmaceutical and medical manufacturing companies

reported an average salary of $92,030 for biostatisticians.

- Contract research organizations (CRO) also hire

biostatisticians provide clinical-trial and clinical-study

support for drugs and medical devices.

- Government agencies, research organizations, and medical

companies invested 6 billion dollars more in CRO-run

research in 2004 than 1994 and the trend continues.

Baxter ~ Health Care Company ~

- Biostatistician

Baxter ~ Health Care Company ~

- Biostatistician (Full-time)

• Duties:

Provide statistical support on clinical studies, including

representing the biostatistics group on clinical study

teams

Provide SAS programming support for analysis datasets

and presentation tables

Develop oversight responsibilities on studies that are

outsourced to partners

Provide statistical input to publications, presentations,

and non-study related activities

• Qualifications:

Masters Degree in Biostatistics or an equivalent analytic

degree with excellent SAS programming skills

Biostatisticians

in Hospitals

- Biostatisticians collaborate with other investigators on

clinical and laboratory studies.

- Biostatisticians will help to plan studies, to apply for grant

funding, resolve data analysis problems, to determine

sample size requirements, and to draft the results of the

study.

- Hospital biostatisticians will collaborate with many different

departments that have a gamut of focuses including

psychiatry, dentistry, and anesthesiology.

- Biostatistician

• Duties: Creation and maintenance of

data capture systems,

designing overall schema for

data collection to adhere to

protocol, programming missing

data checks.

Perform statistical analysis of

studies.

Supervise research team on

data entry, quality control, and

form development.

Recode and restructure

historical datasets.

• Qualifications: • Master’s degree in biostatistics

preferred, through programs

including but not limited

public health

Massachusetts General Hospital

Biostatistician Career Ladder

Non-Faculty Biostatistician

Salary

- The median starting salary for a non-faculty

biostatistician with a master’s degree is $63,200.

- The median salary for a non-faculty biostatistician with

a doctorate is $99,300.

Faculty Biostatistician

Salary

- Assistant Biostatistics

Professors saw a 12.5%

salary increase between 2006

and 2012.

- Full Biostatistics Professors

with not more than six years

of experience reported a

median salary of $194,000

- Starting Assistant Professors

with a PhD in Biostatistics

had a median starting salary

of $102,200.

Biostatistician

Earnings Calculator

http://biostatpharma.com/home.htm?page=welcome



Statistics vs. Biostatistics

Salaries

- While the data only covers full

professors, it illustrates the

trend found in academic and

non-academic positions between

statistics and biostatistics.

- Biostatistics is in greater

demand with fewer qualified

professionals resulting in a

higher salary and greater job

security.

- Green = Biostatistics Salary,

Yellow = Lower Statistics Salary,

Blue = Higher Statistics Salary.

Biostatisticians

Job Security

Biostatisticians have higher job security than most

professions including statisticians.

- A smaller supply of skilled workers creates a demand for

that profession and fosters job security.

- Biostatisticians are specialized requiring at least a

graduate degree in biostatistics or public health with an

emphasis in biostatistics.

- Government positions may have lower salaries than

private-sector biostatisticians but have higher job

security.

Need for Graduate

Statisticians According to the National Center for Education Statistics,

0.83% of master’s degrees conferred in 2011-2012 were in

mathematics, statistics, or biostatistics.

Biostatistics Degree

A graduate degree in biostatistics will equip you with the

necessary skills needed in the workforce through:

- Rigorous training in statistical theory and methods

- Basic knowledge of a biomedical specialty area (i.e.

epidemiology, clinical trials, computational biology,

neuroscience)

- Experience in a team science setting, either in an

independent study, an internship, or a short-term

(2–3 month) research rotation in a specific clinic or lab.

- Training in communication, management and

leadership skills, as well as research ethics.

“A biostatistician needs to understand both statistical theory

and the use of bioinformatic tools.” ~ Fabio Macciardi

Biostatistics Degree

Biostatisticians working in the fields of genetic epidemiology

and bioinformatics need some background in biomedical

sciences, covered by the PSM-Biostatistics program at AU.

STEM PMF: Biostatistician The Presidential Management Fellows program was expanded

to close the skills gap in federal agencies for mission critical

occupations, including science, technology, engineering, and

mathematics disciplines.

- Advanced degree will make you eligible for a PMF position.

- Repayment of student loans.

- Begin managerial work to start at least at GS-9 level.

- 2 year fellowship included with networking and training.

Articles & Resources

You can find many articles further discussing the occupational

outlook of biostatisticians, such as:

Desperately Seeking Biostatisticians

by Anne Gimalac (Nature Reviews)

Analyze This: As Key Players on Scientific Teams,

Biostatisticians are in High Demand

by Kendall Powell (Nature Publishing Group)


This website is a great resource for understanding

biostatistics as an occupation and learning from

professionals in the field.




Works Cited http://publichealthonline.gwu.edu/applying-biostatistics-to-a-career-in-public-health/ http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d13/tables/dt13_323.10.asp http://www.amstat.org/careers/biostatistics.cfm http://biostatpharma.com/home.htm?page=welcome http://www.forbes.com/2009/10/21/job-security-flexibility-forbes-woman-net-worth-personal-brand.html http://sph.berkeley.edu/areas-study/epidemiologybiostatistics Lisa M. Sullivan, Marie Davidian, Anita L. DeStefano & Roslyn A. Stone, (2013) Building the Biostatistics Pipeline: Summer Institutes for Training in Biostatistics (SIBS). CHANCE 26:1, pages 4-9. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15368660 http://www.nature.com/naturejobs/science/articles/10.1038/nj7010-880a Steinbrook, R (May 26, 2005). "Gag clauses in clinical-trial agreements.". The New England Journal of Medicine 352 (21): 2160–2 http://www.pmf.gov/the-opportunity/pmf-stem.aspx

AU Professional Science Master’s (PSM) in Biostatistics “Employment opportunities for graduates of this program are plentiful. Students are prepared for positions with public health organizations, government policy agencies, medical research institutions, big data research centers, genome research institutions, census and health record centers, public and private hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, medical software companies, medical device manufactures, environmental companies, insurance companies, consulting firms, international health organizations, and more. Join American University to secure your future!”

Director of the Program

department of - etma

Documents