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For more major information contact: Division of Statistics DuSable
Hall 366 Northern
Illinois University DeKalb,
Illinois 60115 (815)
753-6778 E-mail: stat_ugradprog[at]math.niu.edu Rama T.
Lingham, Director Alan Polansky, Director of Graduate and For undergraduate admission requirements contact: Office of
Admissions Northern
Illinois University P.O. Box
3001 DeKalb, IL
60115-2883 (815) 753-0446 E-mail: admissions[at]niu.edu Division of Statistics Home Page: http://www.math.niu.edu/StatDiv/ Admissions Home Page: http://www.admissions.niu.edu/admissions/ NIU Home Page: Undergraduate Program of Courses: http://www.math.niu.edu/StatDiv/ugrad-program.htm
Course Descriptions: http://www.math.niu.edu/StatDiv/course-descrips.htm
Northern Illinois University is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Institution. |
Our Increasingly Quantitative World The world
is becoming quantitative. More and more professions, from the everyday to the
exotic, depend on data and numerical reasoning. Data are
not just numbers, but numbers that carry information about a specific setting
and need to be interpreted in that setting. With this growth in the use of
data comes a growing demand for the services of statisticians, who are
experts in ·
Producing trustworthy
data, ·
Analyzing data to make
their meaning clear, and ·
Drawing practical conclusions
from data. Examples of
Statistical Careers Here are a
few of the many settings in which statisticians contribute to our well-being.
Medicine The search for improved
medical treatments rests on careful experiments that compare promising new treatments
with the current state of the art. Statisticians work with medical teams to
design the experiments and to analyze the complex data they produce. Environment Studies of the environment
require data on the abundance and location of plants and animals, on the
spread of pollution form its sources, and on the possible effects of changes
in human activities. The data are often incomplete or uncertain, but
statisticians can help uncover their meaning. Industry The future of many
industries and their employees depends on improvement in the quality of goods
and services and in the efficiency with which they are produced and
delivered. Improvement should be based on data rather than guesswork. Ever
more companies are installing elaborate systems to collect and act on data in
order to better serve their customers. Government Surveys How many people are
unemployed this month? What do we export to China, and what do we import? Are
rates of violent crime increasing or decreasing? Government wants data on
issues like these to guide policy, and government statistical agencies
provide them by surveys of households and businesses. Market Research Are consumer tastes in television programs changing? What are promising locations for a new retail outlet? Market researchers use both government data and their own surveys to answer questions like these. Statisticians design the elaborate surveys that gather data for both public and private use. |
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The Nature of Statistics Statistics provides
the reasoning and the methods for producing and understanding data.
Statisticians are specialists, but statistics by its nature demands that they
be generalists also. Mathematics and Computers Are Involved Statistics uses mathematics, but it is not abstract or isolated:
statisticians work with people from other professional backgrounds to solve
practical problems. Statistics uses modern computing to organize and analyze
data, and statisticians command specialized tools, but the emphasis is on the
data to be understood and the problem to be solved rather than on computing
for its own sake. ... But Understanding the Data Is Crucial Statisticians must know
more than statistics. A statistician who works in medicine or in a
manufacturing plant or in market research must learn enough medicine or
engineering or marketing to understand the data in their setting.
Statisticians need the ability to work with other people, to listen, and to
communicate. Are You a Future
Statistician? ·
Do you like mathematics
and computing? ·
Do you want to use
your quantitative skills to solve practical problems? ·
Do you like to
collaborate with others in team efforts? ·
Do you like the
challenge of constantly learning new things and tackling new problems? If so, you
may be a future statistician. The demand is there. Consider joining the
quantitative world. |
Undergraduate Statistics Program at NIU
The
Department of Mathematical Sciences offers the Bachelor of Science degree
with ·
a major
in mathematical sciences with an emphasis in Probability and Statistics. ·
a minor
in applied probability and statistics. This minor should be of interest to
students majoring in the physical or social sciences or in business. ·
an honors
program in mathematical sciences and participates in the University
Honors Program. In
addition, appropriate courses are available for students wishing to pursue a
career in the actuarial sciences. Several of
the department's courses fulfill the university mathematics core competency
requirement, and others can be used by non-majors toward fulfilling the
sciences and mathematics area requirement in the University’s general
education program. In addition, many of its courses are included as
requirements for other programs.
Actuarial Sciences Think
about your future? Do
you like business? Math? Statistics? Do
you like high salaries and job security? Have
you thought about a career as an actuary? Six of the
ten hottest and highest paying jobs are in fields that benefited the most
from the heightened fear and uncertainty that have persisted since September
11, 2001, according to surveys done by Challenger, Gray & Christmas,
Inc., the international outplacement firm.
Based upon information provided by the U.S. Department of Labor
Occupational Handbook 2002-2003 edition, actuarial positions are expected to
grow between 3-9% through 2010.
Additional information is available at the following web site: www.beanactuary.org. How do I become an actuary? In the Division of
Statistics and the Department of Mathematical Sciences here at NIU, we have
courses that will prepare you for a career in the actuarial profession and
help you pass the actuarial exams that are necessary to obtain certification
and advancement. You can also join
the NIU Actuarial Club to meet other students who share your interests and
aspirations. If you are a science or
engineering major and want to expand your employment opportunities as well as
increase your chances of being offered a good job, then think about getting a
minor degree in Statistics. In the Division of
Statistics here at NIU, we offer such a degree. All you need are three STAT courses in addition to MATH 299,
230 and 232 (MATH 240 is a prerequisite if you decide to take Where are NIU Statistics
graduates working? Here is a partial list: ·
Marketing
and market research firms such as Nielson Media Research ·
Pharmaceutical
companies such as Abbott Laboratories ·
Software
development firms such as Information Resources
Interested? Want more information?
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