What were employers looking for in terms of skills, qualities, coursework and applied experience?
Minhee: In my case, I think that previous work experience in the ACTG helped a lot. Generally speaking, because the work of a biostatistician usually involves teamwork with experts of various disciplines, I assume that the employers look for candidates with good communication skills. And to communicate the concepts well to others, a solid coursework that provides a good understanding is important. Mahlet: I’m in a training program in Bioinformatics, so the employers were looking for statisticians who are interested in getting involved in the field and have good collaborative skills. I had the advantage that my thesis work was in the same area of research, which I believe was a plus. Andres: Hard to say, since I didn’t go through any formal interviews. For the HSPH research associate position, I suspect that professional reputation and personality played a big role. Amy: Everyone wanted applied experience. Good writing and speaking skills as well. SAS programming is a plus. Coursework i
