share your experience with biostatistics?

[rachruns]

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I am currently in my 3rd undergrad year in Exercise Physiology. The original plan was to pursue a DPT (mostly because I didn't know what else to do with ex phys). But I took a course this semester that touched on public health, and it completely opened my eyes to this whole other field I had not been previously exposed to. From what I learned in the course and through my own exploration, I think the discipline I am most drawn to is Biostatistics. I have an interest in population health, have a strong science background, and truly love working with numbers and equations (took Calc 2 & 3 last year as free electives).

Could those of you in biostatistics (pursing an MS or MPH, currently working in the field, etc.) share your experiences? What do you enjoy about it? For those working, what is your day-to-day like on the job? I have a good idea of what the overall "job duties" are for biostatisticians, but I know there's more to any career than what your duties are. I want to make sure this is the right area for me before beginning the grad school application process next year.

My undergrad school does not have a public health department, the professor of the course I mentioned is more of a behavior scientist and admitted he could not help me much, and Google search is only getting me so far. So I would really appreciate any insight! Thank you!

 

[ratonlaveur]

I'm an epidemiologist in academia, but work often w/ biostatisticians - who usually do a lot of the analyses for several different principal investigators. Things might be different at other institutions, but at least here, they always seem to be quite busy w/ their multiple projects, so managing priorities is a must. They crunch the number independently, but confirm and work w/ other biostatisticians and the principal investigators to finalize their analyses. Oh, and many of these biostatisticians are working at a senior level w/ a Master's. A doctorate doesn't really seem to be required unless you want to teach. You could also be a biostatistician in other industries ofcourse like a consultancy, where at least w/ one biostatistician I knew it is apparently less hectic than in academia, though I don't know much beyond.

 

[Catria]

How much do biostat programs like physics majors? Maybe I can get a MPH in biostat if cosmology doesn't work out...

 

[rachruns]

Thank you for your response, ratonlaveur! Does anyone else have information, perhaps with experience outside of academia? Also, can someone confirm what I believe to be true of the degree options - MPH is typically a terminal degree, offers a wider scope of public health, and is more application-based, while MS is more theory-based and better for those who will pursue a PhD. Just want to make sure I'm heading in the right direction with all of this!

Catria - I am probably not the best person to answer this, but I'll give it a shot. My understanding is that the specific undergraduate degree doesn't really matter as long as you have sufficient preparation. For that, it really depends on the institution. Some only accept (or strongly prefer) people who already have another degree and want the MPH to improve their quantitative skills, while other schools are better suited for people fresh out of undergrad. And of the latter category, some require linear algebra, upper calculus, etc. while others have no pre-requisites. You can check out each school's websites for their specific requirements.

 

[GUH]

How much do biostat programs like physics majors? Maybe I can get a MPH in biostat if cosmology doesn't work out...

If you kick butt on your GRE and demonstrate an interest in public health, you should be fine to get into an MPH biostats program.

 

[Catria]

If you kick butt on your GRE and demonstrate an interest in public health, you should be fine to get into an MPH biostats program.

As far as the GRE is concerned, I got ~157-159V, ~167-169Q on practice tests. Have no clue as to whether biostat programs (or physics PhDs, for that matter) take the AW part into account. Combine that with a 3.7 GPA in a physics-mathematics joint honors degree... correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think getting into MPH biostat programs is a problem, if I achieve the scores indicated above for real, as long as I can demonstrate an interest in biostat. The ones I'd want most by then would be Tulane or Tufts; maybe I could aim higher if I need to.

 

[kutmasta]

As far as the GRE is concerned, I got ~157-159V, ~167-169Q on practice tests. Have no clue as to whether biostat programs (or physics PhDs, for that matter) take the AW part into account. Combine that with a 3.7 GPA in a physics-mathematics joint honors degree... correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think getting into MPH biostat programs is a problem, if I achieve the scores indicated above for real, as long as I can demonstrate an interest in biostat. The ones I'd want most by then would be Tulane or Tufts; maybe I could aim higher if I need to.

With those stats you'd have no problem being competitive in top 5 programs, assuming you have some work experience necessary for certain programs. Good luck on the real exam!