Abstract

Biostatisticians with advanced degrees are highly sought after. Employment opportunities in the fields of mathematics and statistics are expected to increase dramatically by 2028. Underrepresentation of minorities in biostatistics has been a persistent problem, yielding a demographic landscape that differs substantially from the general U.S. population. In some instances, students may have the appropriate quantitative skills, but are unaware of biostatistics and in other instances, students may not yet have the appropriate quantitative background, but are intellectually capable and willing to shore up those skills once they learn about biostatistics as a viable, exciting career option. Therefore, to ensure robust scientific advancement, there must be a concerted effort to increase the pipeline of intellectually talented persons available with exposure to the appropriate quantitative skills who are interested in careers in biostatistics. The overarching goal of this article is to discuss the development, implementation, and impact of a federally funded pipeline initiative aimed at increasing the number of underrepresented minorities successful in graduate training and professional careers in biostatistics as well as establishing effective mentoring and networking relationships. Our findings provide a roadmap for the development of sustainable initiatives to promote diversity in biostatistics and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields more broadly. Supplementary files for this article are available online.

摘要

具有高学历的生物统计学家备受追捧。到2028年，数学和统计领域的就业机会预计将急剧增加。生物统计学中少数群体的代表性不足一直是一个长期问题，其人口状况与美国总人口大不相同。在某些情况下，学生可能具有适当的定量技能，但不了解生物统计学，而在其他情况下，学生可能还没有适当的定量背景，但是一旦他们将生物统计学作为一种知识学习，他们就具有智力上的能力并愿意支持这些技能。可行，令人兴奋的职业选择。因此，为了确保强大的科学进步，必须作出一致的努力，以增加对生物统计学工作感兴趣的具有适当定量技能的知识型人才。本文的总体目标是讨论联邦资助的管道计划的发展，实施和影响，该计划旨在增加在生物统计学方面的研究生培训和专业职业中获得成功代表性不足的少数群体的数量，并建立有效的指导和网络关系。我们的研究结果为发展可持续计划提供了路线图，以在更广泛的范围内促进生物统计学和科学，技术，工程和数学领域的多样性。可以在线获取本文的补充文件。