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Statisticians

Typical education: Master's degreeLower pressure Bright Outlook

What they do

Develop or apply mathematical or statistical theory and methods to collect, organize, interpret, and summarize numerical data to provide usable information. May specialize in fields such as biostatistics, agricultural statistics, business statistics, or economic statistics. Includes mathematical and survey statisticians.

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

  • Evaluate the statistical methods and procedures used to obtain data to ensure validity, applicability, efficiency, and accuracy.
  • Process large amounts of data for statistical modeling and graphic analysis, using computers.
  • Report results of statistical analyses, including information in the form of graphs, charts, and tables.
  • Prepare data for processing by organizing information, checking for inaccuracies, and adjusting and weighting the raw data.
  • Develop and test experimental designs, sampling techniques, and analytical methods.
  • Plan data collection methods for specific projects, and determine the types and sizes of sample groups to be used.

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

Statistician is usually not a straight-out-of-school job. Most people earn a bachelor's, work 1 to 2 years in a related analyst role, and then earn a master's degree before moving into statistician work.

  1. Bachelor's degree in statistics or mathematics

    4 years

    You build the core math, probability, and programming skills (often in R or Python) that every statistics job needs.

  2. Data Analyst

    1-2 years

    You clean, organize, and summarize real data for a team, which shows employers you can turn numbers into useful answers.

  3. Master's degree in statistics or biostatistics

    2 years

    Graduate coursework goes deeper into statistical theory and methods, and it is the education level most statistician jobs ask for.

  4. Statistician

    Ongoing career

    You design studies, apply statistical methods, and interpret data to help organizations make decisions.

Where it can lead

  1. Senior Statistician

    3-5 years of experience first

    You lead larger projects, mentor junior staff, and make the key methods decisions instead of only carrying them out.

  2. Statistics Manager

    5+ years of experience first

    You oversee a team of statisticians and connect their work to business or research goals, with less hands-on analysis and more planning.

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 it is offeredStrong algebra, precalculus, and any statistics or probability class build the foundation for college statistics courses.
  • Join the math team or a math competition clubSolving timed problems and working in teams builds reasoning skills and gives you something concrete to list on applications.
  • Learn basic coding, like Python or spreadsheet formulasWorking with data in code or spreadsheets early makes college statistics courses much easier to start.
  • Get a part-time job or volunteer role that involves keeping records or tracking numbersTasks like tracking sales, scores, or volunteer hours give you real experience organizing and summarizing data.
  • Look for a science fair project with data collection and analysisDesigning a simple study and analyzing the results shows you what statisticians actually do.

In college

  • Major in statistics or math, and take probability, regression, and programming coursesThese classes are the core training for the bachelor's degree that leads toward statistician work.
  • Work as a research assistant with a professorHelping analyze data for a real study builds practical skills and often leads to strong recommendation letters for graduate school.
  • Apply for a summer internship at a health, survey, government, or business research organizationAn internship shows how statistics is used in real settings and adds experience employers look for.
  • Join a data science or statistics student clubGroup projects and competitions let you practice with real datasets and meet people already in the field.
  • Plan for a master's degree and look at graduate programs earlyKnowing the admission requirements early, like math courses and research experience, helps you prepare in time.

Tips for getting started

  • Get comfortable with spreadsheets, SQL, and at least one statistical programming language like R or Python early, since these show up in almost every statistics job posting.
  • Look for entry-level analyst, research assistant, or data-entry-with-analysis roles while you study, so you can gain the 1 to 2 years of experience employers often expect.
  • Ask a professor or working statistician about their day-to-day work. It is a quick way to check whether the career fits what you enjoy.

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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