A note from the Department Chair:

Statistics is the science of data. Data are numbers with a context; the particular context that gave rise to the numbers is important. In addition to a knowledge of mathematics, statisticians must learn about the scientific disciplines that generate data of interest to understand and explain the observational studies or the statistical experiments in question. For example, statisticians calculate probabilities for DNA paternity tests; design clinical trials to study the effectiveness of new medications; study economic time series data, such as gross domestic product from developing countries in Africa; and develop statistical models of responses from fMRI psychological experiments.

The Department of Statistics is a relatively new department in the College of Arts and Sciences at Indiana University in Bloomington. We were created in July 2006 from Commitment to Excellence funding from the University. The faculty in the department either have majority appointments in Statistics, or are affiliated with both Statistics and a variety of other departments on campus, such as Psychology, Informatics, Economics, Education, Business, Mathematics, Geography, and Computer Science.

The department is responsible for the Indiana Statistical Consulting Center which provides support to the Indiana University (all campuses!) research community. Take your statistics questions to the ISCC --- they will assist with design and analysis of your studies or experiments.

The department is clearly in a growth mode, hiring staff and faculty, and creating courses and degree programs. We have revamped the B.S. in Statistics (click on "Undergraduate Program" over to the left) and have created a new Ph.D. Minor in Statistical Science and an M.S. in Applied Statistics. Our new M.S. in Statistical Science and Ph.D. in Statistical Science should be in place by Fall, 2010 (click on "Graduate Program" over to the left). We welcome you to browse our website, see what's going on, and let us know if you have any questions. I am particularly proud of our faculty -- a large, diverse group of statisticians, both mathematical and applied, clearly world-class. Our future is now.... a large expansion in statistics courses offered at IU, a "critical mass" of faculty in the department (core faculty size should be about ten before we are done hiring), and new degree programs.

Statistics is a discipline for now and the future. Jobs are amazingly plentiful. We are excited to be able to grow along with it.

My best,

Stan Wasserman
Department Chair