This paper is from Session 6G: Preparing for the world of work: lessons for statistics education from beyond the field

which comes under Topic 6: Statistics education, training and the workplace

Other papers under session 6G ... 6G2: Applying a model of professional learning to case studies in... 6G3: Statistical training for non-statistical staff at the Office for... 6G4: The importance of teaching statistics in a professional context

(Wednesday 14th, 11:00-13:00)

Lessons from medicine for training professional statisticians

Presenter

• Alison Gibbs (University of Toronto, Canada)

Co-author

• Tim Guimond (University of Toronto, Canada)

Abstract

In addition to knowledge of a constantly expanding collection of statistical methods, statistical consultants must have excellent communications skills and the ability to empathize with their clients’ practical problems. These characteristics that are expected of professional statisticians by their clients are also expected of physicians by their patients. In the early 1900’s, medical education in North America was restructured and standardized. All medical students followed a program of pre-clinical courses, succeeded by hands-on clinical studies. A recent trend in medical education has been to restructure education around key physician competencies. We explore a model of medical education and consider how it applies to a graduate course in statistical consulting. In particular, we discuss how we expose students to a wide variety of clients and problems, and describe the use of consulting rounds, modeled after medical rounds.

Other papers under session 6G ... 6G2: Applying a model of professional learning to case studies in... 6G3: Statistical training for non-statistical staff at the Office for... 6G4: The importance of teaching statistics in a professional context