Statistical Consulting as a Career Path

• Activity Number: 267
• Type: Roundtables
• Date/Time: Tuesday, August 2, 2011 : 7:00 AM to 8:15 AM
• Sponsor: Section on Statistical Consulting
• Author(s): Carlos Alzola*+ and Anamaria Segnini Kazanis*+
• Companies: Data Insights Inc. and ASKSTATS Consulting LLC
• Keywords: Statistical Consulting ; Statistical Career ; Statistical Career Path ; Statistical Apprenticeship ; Statistical Internships

Abstract

Statistics is a field rife with opportunity. Statistics professionals and expertise are needed in all sorts of fields and industries. Statisticians are hired by government agencies (Census Bureau, Federal Reserve, FDA, NIH, NIST to name a few), pharmaceuticals, financial, market research companies among other. They work in fields as diverse as economics, survey research, quality control in industrial processes and even study human rights violations. A statistical consultant is expected to be an expert in his field and also to be intimately familiar with the industry in which he/she is consulting. For that reason, entry level positions are hard to come by. Initial apprenticeship usually starts during graduate school in university sponsored centers for statistical consultation and/or college internships. An aspiring consulting statistician needs to develop an area of expertise in addition to his/her statistical training that will be of interest to a potential client. This round table will discuss opportunities and options for the young (and and not so young)statistics professional in consulting.