Page 43 - Choices Magazine - KS3 Issue 2

STEM JOB PROFILES Responsibilities

Statistician Statisticians interpret data and Depending on your area of work

you may also be involved in:
communicate results to their clients,
often with the aid of mathematical • providing projections of future student
techniques and software. In this role numbers, allowing for changes in the
Working as statistician means dealing with you’ll ensure that complex statistical birth rate, and assessing how many
data and helping to find practical solutions to concepts are explained in a way the teachers will be needed in the sector
problems. If you’re keen on numbers, skilled in IT client can understand and advise on
and like compiling information, this could be the strategy. Some studies take only a few • designing experiments to assess
role for you months to complete, while others the associated side effects of drugs
Statisticians are concerned with the collection, require years of work. • designing, implementing,
and analysing clinical studies
analysis, interpretation, and presentation of Your general tasks may include:
quantitative information. They work in a • consulting with clients and agreeing • monitoring, reporting and
range of sectors, including: what data to collect and how it should modelling disease outbreaks
• education be gathered - taking into account any • collecting data to monitor levels
• the environment ethical and legislative considerations of air pollution
• finance • designing experiments, trials, or surveys • collecting data to measure the
toxicity of food additives
• forensics to produce the required data • recommending whether certain items
• government • collecting and analysing the data should be included in food production,
• health • interpreting the data and making such as folic acid in bread making
sure that the right decisions are made
• market research based on the results • checking quality control standards
• sport • monitoring data collected throughout in industry
• transportation. its shelf life • designing experiments to improve

As a statistician, you will design and manage • presenting results to others, such the quality of new products
experiments and surveys and deal with the initial as senior managers, regulatory • predicting demand for products
collection of data. You’ll process and analyse authorities, and clients and services
the data in context, looking for patterns to help • advising policymakers on key • analysing data to forecast trends
make decisions. You will then advise on findings decisions based on results for pension providers
and recommend strategy. • carrying out research, • teaching statistical methods
Statisticians often work in teams, usually including often as part of a team and the theory of statistics.
professionals from other disciplines. Strong analytical • writing reports and articles
and IT skills are essential, as are interpersonal and for publication
communication skills in order to share findings with • presenting findings at conferences
43 | APRIL 2021
your colleagues and clients. both in the UK and abroad.
creating audio, programming, localisation,
testing, editing, and producing.

APRIL 2021 | 42