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Biostatisticians

Typical education: Master's degreeLower pressure Bright Outlook

What they do

Develop and apply biostatistical theory and methods to the study of life sciences.

Kinds of work

  • Investigative: Science, research, figuring out how things work and solving complex problems.
  • Conventional: Organizing information, following clear procedures and working with data and details.

Lower pressure: How much pressure workers in this job report: deadlines, conflict, dealing with upset people, the cost of mistakes, responsibility for others' safety, competition and long hours. It varies a lot from one employer to the next. Source: U.S. Department of Labor worker surveys.

Pay, tasks and more

Salary

United States $105,650 Median per year · $50.79/hr Most earn $64,000–$174,050

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025.

What you might do

  • Write program code to analyze data with statistical analysis software.
  • Determine project plans, timelines, or technical objectives for statistical aspects of biological research studies.
  • Collect data through surveys or experimentation.
  • Analyze archival data, such as birth, death, and disease records.
  • Teach graduate or continuing education courses or seminars in biostatistics.
  • Design or maintain databases of biological data.

Job outlook

Bright Outlook Rapid Growth

United States
11% more jobs by 2035, much faster than average · about 1,900 openings a year

Openings include new jobs and jobs left by workers who retire or change careers. Projections: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Bright Outlook": U.S. Department of Labor.

Where they work

  • Federal government, excluding postal service15.7%
  • Research and development in the physical, engineering, and life sciences14.8%
  • Colleges, universities, and professional schools13.4%
  • State government, excluding education and hospitals7.7%
  • Management, scientific, and technical consulting services7.6%

Share of all workers in this career. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Employment Matrix.

Experience before this job: 1 to 2 years

Career path

How people usually get into this career, from school to their first job and beyond.

Typical education: Master's degreeExperience before this job: 1 to 2 years

Biostatistician is not an entry-level job. Most people earn a bachelor's degree, then a master's degree, and usually spend 1 to 2 years in a related role first, so the path often takes 6 or more years after high school.

  1. Bachelor's degree in statistics, math, or a life science

    4 years

    Build a solid base in math, probability, and biology, and learn a statistics program like R or SAS, which you will use in every later step.

  2. Statistical Assistant

    1-2 years

    Work with real datasets, clean data, run standard analyses, and help senior statisticians, which builds the hands-on experience employers look for before graduate study or a senior role.

  3. Master's degree in biostatistics or statistics

    About 2 years

    Study advanced methods for medical and health research, such as clinical trial design and survival analysis, while often working on applied projects.

  4. Biostatistician

    Career start

    Design studies, analyze health and life science data, and explain results to doctors, researchers, and regulators.

Where it can lead

  1. Senior Biostatistician

    3-5 years of experience first

    You lead analysis plans for larger studies, mentor junior staff, and take more responsibility for study conclusions.

  2. Biostatistics Manager

    5+ years of experience first

    You oversee a team of biostatisticians, set priorities across projects, and manage budgets and timelines.

What you can do now

Ideas for high school and college students.

In high school

  • Take the most advanced math you can, including statistics if offeredStrong math skills are the foundation for every step toward biostatistics.
  • Take biology or health science classesKnowing how medical and biology research works will help you understand the data you would later analyze.
  • Join a math team or science fairCompetitions teach you to test ideas with data and explain your results clearly.
  • Learn basic spreadsheet work or a beginner coding languageSimple data skills give you a head start for the programming you will use later in college.
  • Volunteer at a hospital, clinic, or health nonprofitSeeing how health information is recorded and used shows you the real problems biostatisticians solve.

In college

  • Major in statistics, math, or biostatistics, or pair math with biologyA focused major gives you the theory and the life science context that graduate programs and employers look for.
  • Learn R or Python and SQLThese are the everyday tools of biostatistics, and fluency with them makes you a stronger candidate for internships and jobs.
  • Work as a research assistant in a campus labHands-on work with real study data builds experience and gives you references for graduate school.
  • Seek a summer internship at a hospital, public health agency, or pharmaceutical companyAn internship shows you how biostatistics is used on the job and helps you decide whether to pursue a master's.
  • Join a statistics or data science clubClubs offer practice projects, peer support, and a way to meet people already working in the field.

Tips for getting started

  • Take as many statistics, probability, and programming classes as you can, and learn R or Python early, since nearly every biostatistics job asks for it.
  • Look for research assistant jobs in a university lab or hospital, where you can see how medical studies collect and analyze data.
  • Keep a small portfolio of projects, such as an analysis of public health data, so you can show employers what you can do.

Related jobs that often lead here

Related jobs a step up

Education, experience and related careers: U.S. Department of Labor. The step-by-step path, where it can lead and what you can do now were written by AI as typical examples; many people take other ways.

College majors that lead here

  • Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods Master's degree: typical pay 1 year after finishing $92,952 a year · typical debt $39,744
  • Data Analytics Master's degree: typical pay 1 year after finishing $91,298 a year · typical debt $34,250
  • Applied Mathematics Master's degree: typical pay 1 year after finishing $90,692 a year · typical debt $34,212
  • Economics Master's degree: typical pay 1 year after finishing $74,869 a year · typical debt $39,071
  • Data Science Master's degree: typical pay 1 year after finishing $107,873 a year · typical debt $38,994
  • Statistics Master's degree: typical pay 1 year after finishing $99,597 a year · typical debt $29,791

Majors: U.S. Department of Education and BLS (CIP–SOC crosswalk). Earnings and debt: College Scorecard, typical across U.S. colleges.

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