| |  | | Biostatistics | Link to a list of faculty for this program.
Contact Information—Student Services Center, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, MMC 819, 420 Delaware Street S.E., Minneapolis, MN 55455 (612-626-3500 or 1-800-774-8636; fax 612-626-6931;
sph-ssc@umn.edu; www.sph.umn.edu or www.biostat.umn.edu).
Along with the program-specific requirements listed below, please read the General
Information section of this catalog for Graduate School requirements that apply
to all major fields.
For For application procedures, see the School of Public Health Web site at www.sph.umn.edu/students/application/home.html.
Note: If you are or ever were a student in the University of Minnesota Graduate School and you are applying to any graduate or professional program in the University of Minnesota, you must complete a change of status application. See the Graduate School Web site for the appropriate form and fee.
Curriculum—Biostatistics combines statistics, biomedical science, and computing to advance health research. Biostatisticians design, direct, and analyze clinical trials; develop new statistical methods; and analyze data from observational studies, laboratory experiments, and health surveys. This is an ideal field for students who have strong mathematical backgrounds and who enjoy working with computers, collaborating with investigators, and participating in health research. Students take courses in biostatistical methods, theory of statistics, clinical trials, statistical computing, categorical data, survival analysis, and health sciences.
Prerequisites for Admission—For the M.S., multivariable calculus and linear algebra, an introductory course in applied statistics, and programming in C, Fortran, or other high-level programming language are required. For the Ph.D., a bachelor's or master's degree in mathematics, statistics, or biostatistics.
Three letters of recommendation and the GRE are required. Applicants should have an overall GPA of 3.10. Applicants to the M.S. program should have a GPA of 3.40 in quantitative courses, 450 on the verbal GRE, and 550 on the quantitative and analytical GRE. Applicants to the Ph.D. program should have a GPA of 3.70 in quantitative courses, 550 on the verbal GRE, and 650 on the quantitative and analytical GRE. Applicants to either program who are not native speakers of English should have a TOEFL score of 600 (paper), 250 (computer), or 100 (Internet), or a score of 7.0 on IELTS.
Special Application Requirements—Students should apply for admission during fall semester only. New students generally are not admitted in spring semester.
Key to test abbreviations (GRE, TOEFL, GMAT, MELAB).
 For an online application or for more information about Graduate School admissions, see the General Information section in this catalog, or visit the Graduate School Web site.
Courses—Refer to Public Health (PUBH), where most biostatistics courses are numbered 64xx, 74xx or 84xx, or online.
Use of 4xxx Courses—No 4xxx courses may be used to satisfy any graduate degree program requirements in biostatistics. | M.S. Degree Requirements | | For
the M.S. Plan B degree, students
must complete 11 courses with
a GPA of 3.00, pass a written
exam, complete the Plan B project,
and pass a final oral exam.
Most students need two years
of full-time study to finish
the degree. The required credits
are divided among three areas:
1) seven required courses in
statistical theory and biostatistics
methods; 2) one elective course
in health science; 3) three
elective courses in biostatistics.
Details of the program are
in the Student Handbook at
www.biostat.umn.edu. The M.S.
Plan A thesis degree is for
those who have completed advanced
work, such as a Ph.D. in a
mathematical science and who
want to begin dissertation
research in biostatistics methodology
after only one year of coursework.
Students complete at least
20 credits, (14 in biostatistics
and 6 in related fields), pass
a written exam, complete the
Plan A thesis, and a final
oral exam.
Language Requirements—None.
Final Exam—The final exam is oral.
Minor Requirements for Students Majoring in Other Fields—The master's minor in biostatistics requires two courses from the following list: PUBH 7420, 7430, 7435, 7440, 7445, 7450. Details for minor requirements at www.biostat.umn.edu. | Ph.D. Degree Requirements | The Ph.D. program requires five core courses (including mathematical statistics, linear models, probability models, and Bayesian methodology) and four elective courses in biostatistical theory and methods, a preliminary written examination on the material from some of the required courses, a preliminary oral examination, a written dissertation, and dissertation defense in a final oral examination. This usually requires three years of full-time study after the M.S. degree.
Language Requirements—None.
Minor Requirements for Students Majoring in Other Fields—A doctoral minor for students majoring in statistics consists of two required courses: PUBH 7420, 7450, and a choice of two courses from the following: PUBH 7455, 8442, 8452, 8462, 8472, 8482.
A doctoral minor for students in programs other than statistics consists of two required courses: either PUBH 7405, 7406, or PUBH 7400 Fundamentals of Biostatistical Inference, PUBH 7400 Biostatistical Modeling and Methods and two courses from the following: PUBH 7407, 7420, 7430, 7435, 7440, 7445, 7450. Details for minor requirements at www.biostat.umn.edu. |
Faculty | | For latest graduate faculty listings, see <www.grad.umn.edu/faculty_rosters/faculty.html>. Key to membership categories (abbreviations after faculty names).
Professor
Bradley P. Carlin, SM
John E. Connett, SM
Chap T. Le, SM
James D. Neaton, SM
Wei Pan, SM
Associate Professor
Sudipto Banerjee, SM
Lynn E. Eberly, SM
Patricia M. Grambsch, SM
Birgit Grund, ASM
Timothy E. Hanson, SM
James S. Hodges, SM
Andrew Mugglin, M2
Cavan S. Reilly, SM
William Thomas, M2
Melanie M. Wall, SM
Assistant Professor
Saonli Basu, M2
Tracy L. Bergemann, M2
Susan Duval, AM2
Hongfei Guo, M2
Na Li, M2
Xianghua Luo, M2
Baolin Wu, M2
Adjunct Assistant Professor
Judith A. Punyko, AM2
Research Associate
Katherine Huppler Hullsiek, M2
Robert E. Leduc, M2
Other
Daniel J. Sargent, AM2 | | | | | |
