MS in Biostatistics
In the Master of Science in Biostatistics program, students develop the skills and methods necessary to thrive in the biological, biomedical and health services sciences. Coursework includes statistics, mathematics and public health as well as a comprehensive examination.
The biostatistics program is jointly administered by the Department of Statistics and the Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics in the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health (SPH).
Application Deadlines:
We are not accepting new applications for Fall 2022.
Student Learning Outcomes
- Understand the theory and principles behind the statistical methods most commonly used in biomedical research (contingency tables, survival analysis, mixed models and missing data)
- Learn and apply the underlying principles and methods to design, plan and conduct biomedical studies
- Provide biostatistical advice as a member of a team engaged in a biomedical research project; this expertise includes the manipulation and analysis of data
Accreditation
This degree program is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education through the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences and by the Council on Education for Public Health through the SPH regulations.
MS Transfer Credits
Students may complete the GW Master of Science in Biostatistics program prior to admission to the PhD degree program. In this case, no more than 24 credit hours from the MS degree may be applied toward the PhD coursework requirements. In this instance, the student will be required to take a minimum of 27 additional credit hours of coursework. The distribution of these courses between statistics and public health would depend on the nature of the master's degree and whether the transferred credit hours would be used to defray statistics or public health coursework. Students should consult their academic advisor for more details on this option.
Course Requirements
The general requirements stated under Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, Graduate Programs.
33 credits, including 27 credits in required courses and 6 credits in elective courses, and successful completion of a master's comprehensive examination.
The following requirements must be fulfilled: 33 credits, including 18 credits in statistics courses, 7 credits in public health courses, 6 credits in elective courses, 2 credits in consulting, and successful completion of a master's comprehensive examination.
Code | Title | Credits |
---|---|---|
Prerequisite courses | ||
The courses listed below (or equivalents) are prerequisites for admission consideration and must appear on the student's transcript. Students may apply to the program only after they have fulfilled this requirement: | ||
MATH 1231 | Single-Variable Calculus I | |
MATH 1232 | Single-Variable Calculus II | |
STAT 2118 | Regression Analysis |
Applicants lacking the courses listed below (or equivalents) are considered for admission; however, if admitted, the student is required to complete these courses within two semesters of matriculation in the program. Credit earned in these courses does not count toward the 33 credits required for the degree and grades earned are not reflected in the overall grade-point average.
Code | Title | Credits |
---|---|---|
MATH 2184 | Linear Algebra I | |
MATH 2233 | Multivariable Calculus | |
One of the following: | ||
PUBH 6853 | Use of Statistical Packages for Data Management and Data Analysis * | |
STAT 2183 | Intermediate Statistics Lab/Packages |
Code | Title | Credits |
---|---|---|
Required for the degree | ||
Statistics courses | ||
PUBH 6266 | Biostatistical Methods | |
or PUBH 8877 | Generalized Linear Models in Biostatistics | |
STAT 6201 | Mathematical Statistics I | |
STAT 6202 | Mathematical Statistics II | |
STAT 6210 | Data Analysis | |
STAT 6227 | Survival Analysis | |
STAT 6255 | Clinical Trials | |
or PUBH 6866 | Principles of Clinical Trials | |
Public health courses | ||
PUBH 6003 | Principles and Practices of Epidemiology | |
And two courses (2 credits) selected from the following: | ||
PUBH 6262 | Introduction to Geographic Information Systems | |
PUBH 6263 | Advanced GIS | |
PUBH 6850 | Introduction to SAS for Public Health Research | |
PUBH 6851 | Introduction to R for Public Health Research | |
PUBH 6852 | Introduction to Python for Public Health Research | |
PUBH 6856 | Advanced SAS for Public Health Research | |
And 2 credits in any PUBH course(s) in the 6800 range. | ||
Electives | ||
6 credits in elective courses selected from the following: | ||
PUBH 6854 | Applied Computing in Health Data Science | |
PUBH 6859 | High Performance and Cloud Computing | |
PUBH 6860 | Principles of Bioinformatics | |
PUBH 6861 | Public Health Genomics | |
PUBH 6862 | Applied Linear Regression Analysis for Public Health Research | |
PUBH 6863 | Applied Meta-Analysis | |
PUBH 6865 | Applied Categorical Data Analysis | |
PUBH 6879 | Propensity Score Methods for Causal Inference in Observational Studies | |
PUBH 6884 | Bioinformatics Algorithms and Data Structures | |
PUBH 6886 | Statistical and Machine Learning for Public Health Research | |
PUBH 6887 | Applied Longitudinal Data Analysis for Public Health Research | |
STAT 3187 | Introduction to Sampling | |
STAT 4181 | Applied Time Series Analysis | |
STAT 4188 | Nonparametric Statistics Inference | |
STAT 6197 | Fundamentals of SAS Programming for Data Management | |
STAT 6214 | Applied Linear Models | |
STAT 6215 | Applied Multivariate Analysis I | |
STAT 6216 | Applied Multivariate Analysis II | |
STAT 6217 | Design of Experiments | |
STAT 6223 | Bayesian Statistics: Theory and Applications | |
STAT 6225 | Longitudinal Data Analysis | |
STAT 6231 | Categorical Data Analysis | |
STAT 6240 | Statistical Data Mining | |
STAT 6242 | Modern Regression Analysis | |
STAT 6252 | Statistical Methods in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology | |
STAT 6254 | Statistical Genetics | |
STAT 6287 | Sample Surveys | |
STAT 6289 | Topics in Statistics | |
STAT 8226 | Advanced Biostatistical Methods | |
STAT 8265 | Multivariate Analysis | |
STAT 8273 | Stochastic Processes I | |
STAT 8281 | Advanced Time Series Analysis | |
STAT 8288 | Topics in Sample Surveys | |
Consulting | ||
PUBH 6883 | Biostatistics Consulting Practicum | |
PUBH 6869 | Principles of Biostatistical Consulting | |
Master's comprehensive examination | ||
Students must successfully complete a master's comprehensive examination, a written examination in the field of biostatistics based on the material covered in PUBH 6266 or PUBH 8877. The examination is administered by the faculty of the Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics in the Milken Institute School of Public Health. |
Visit the program website for additional information.