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Nationally Recognized Excellence in Undergraduate Statistics Education

• The Discipline of Statistics

• Skills Statisticians Need

• How We Produce Professional Statisticians

• Careers in Statistics

• Frequently Asked Questions

Nationally Recognized Excellence in Undergraduate Statistics Education

Virginia Tech is a national leader in the development of undergraduate statistics programs. Having awarded more than 400 Bachelor of Science degrees in statistics over the past 35 years, the department has a long history of success in the training of professional statisticians. Furthermore, the undergraduate statistics program at Virginia Tech has earned the reputation of serving as a model for other programs that have been initiated in the U.S. during the past two decades. Today the program has about 35 statistics majors, a number that affords students the benefits of small class sizes, while the size of the faculty gives students the opportunity to profit from expertise in a wide variety of areas of statistics.

The Discipline of Statistics

Statistics has been called the science of decision making in the presence of uncertainty. Although many people think of statistics as just crunching numbers from the sports pages in the newspaper, statistics is actually a much more broad, challenging, and exciting field. Statistics is involved in all of the basic facets of scientific advancement: formulating research questions, designing experiments, surveys, and studies to gather information, analyzing the data obtained with appropriate statistical procedures, and writing conclusions and summarizing the results. Statistics helps people make important informed decisions based on quantitative information. Statistics is therefore a valuable partner to almost any field of study, including engineering, agriculture, social science, medical science, environmental science, forestry, business, and finance.

Skills Statisticians Need

Statisticians help scientists and other researchers formulate research questions and make decisions based on data. To fulfill that role, statisticians must be able to effectively communicate with others. The communication skills needed by statisticians include listening to others describe their work and their problems, translating problem statements made by others into statistical questions, formulating and solving the problems quantitatively using statistical methods for design and analysis, and reporting and discussing the results.

These tasks require that statisticians:

1. be quantitatively literate, understanding the scientific method and how to think quantitatively,

2. be proficient in the use of computers for statistical analysis, word processing, and electronic communication,

3. communicate (in both written and oral forms) scientific findings in a manner that can be understood by persons who are without extensive statistical knowledge,

4. work effectively with others in a team environment, and

5. be interested in and learn quickly about other disciplines and fields of study.

How We Produce Professional Statisticians

The undergraduate statistics program at Virginia Tech prepares students to achieve the skills needed to be professional statisticians through:

1. extensive training in the discipline of statistics and statistical methods,

2. individual writing assignments that include written conclusions in the context of real problems,

3. group projects that develop teamwork and interpersonal skills,

4. presentations that ensure students' ability to communicate orally,

5. extensive use of computers and a variety of statistical software packages in instruction, assignments, statistical analysis, reporting, and communication, and

6. frequent use of and exposure to real examples from a variety of subject areas.

Careers in Statistics

Applications of statistics have grown rapidly in recent years. As a result, the demand for statisticians also has increased. Statisticians are hired by almost any business that hires engineers, computer programmers, economists, or mathematicians.

Many businesses hire statisticians to work specifically with engineers by fitting mathematical models to experimental data. In addition, statisticians are employed in quality assurance programs to determine product safety and to monitor product quality.

Consulting firms that hire a large number of economists also hire statisticians who have a strong background in economics or mathematics. A statistician wishing to enter the consulting industry will work one on one with a large number of clients, and must be extremely self-motivated because most consulting firms work with a base salary and commission.

The largest employers of statisticians in the U.S. and Canada are the national governments. The U.S. government has Statistician and Mathematical Statistician positions. Our statistics majors qualify for the position of Mathematical Statistician, which carries more responsibility, challenge, and remuneration. Most departments of the U.S. government also hire statisticians to work solely on analyzing data. Examples of this can be found in the Bureau of Labor Statistics and in the Census Bureau. Some departments, on the other hand, hire statisticians to work with engineers. Two examples are the Department of Transportation and the Department of the Navy. In addition, some government agencies hire statisticians with other strong backgrounds. For instance, the Department of Health and Human Services hires statisticians to work with social scientists. The Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Agriculture have statisticians who work with chemists and agronomists.

Another applicable field of statistics can be found in actuarial science. Students with a statistic degree gain a solid background with which to pursue this option. Those interested are strongly encouraged to take one or more of the actuarial exams before graduating. The statistics major includes coursework needed for these exams. Though actuaries are considered to be the insurance companies' "mathematician," they are also widely found within governmental agencies, consulting firms, and industry. Information can be obtained from the Undergraduate Coordinator, Leigh Harrell .

Biostatistics also is an increasingly important field in medicine, veterinary, environmental, and forestry services. Pharmaceutical companies are one of the largest employers of statistics graduates today.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I get college credit for Advanced Placement Statistics?

What scholarships are available for Statistics students?

What should I take in high school to prepare me for the VT Statistics program?

Can Statistics majors get a minor or double major in another field?

To learn more about our nationally known program, contact the Undergraduate Administrator: