50 Careers for 50 Years: Fei Ye
During her five years at the Arnold School, Ye most remembers the inspiring mentors – one of whom once juggled stuffed animals to bring statistical concepts to life.
So much of today’s world is data driven! Do you ever imagine yourself making our community healthier by turning data into knowledge that will provide data-driven guidance to improve public health?
Biostatistics is at the forefront of many of today’s big data challenges and uses rigorous methods to unravel the true story hidden within increasingly complex data.
Biostatisticians are currently in great demand! Our graduates hold positions in universities, research institutes, governmental agencies such as CDC, NIH, and state health departments, and in private industry including pharmaceutical companies and even financial institutions.
The Division of Biostatistics includes eleven full-time faculty. Our faculty are passionate about teaching, mentoring and advancing biostatistical methodologies that address complex issues in data analysis and interpretation. We integrate techniques in mathematics, statistics and public health to turn data into the answers to pressing public health and clinical questions. Students will not only acquire rigorous training in statistical methods and computational tools but will be educated in cognate areas of health sciences such as genetics and epidemiology.
The Division’s primary areas of research expertise are longitudinal data analysis, Bayesian data analysis, spatial data analysis, quantile regression, correlated data analysis, survival analysis, brain imaging data analysis, and integrative analysis of “-omics” data.
Degrees Offered
We offer eight advanced degrees in epidemiology and biostatistics. Each graduate degree has specific application deadlines and requirements.
- Master of Science in Biostatistics (MS)
- Ph.D. in Biostatistics
- Biostatistics - Post-Baccalaureate Certificate
Biostatistics News
Assistant professor uses biostatistics to advance neuroscience and wearable device research
The advent of physical activity trackers, heart monitors, and sleep sensors have transformed the possibilities of modern health care, but we have biostatisticians like Beniamino Hadj-Amar to thank for bridging the gap between data and impact.
The evolution of the Arnold School and the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics through Cheryl Addy's eyes
Cheryl Addy came to the Arnold School in 1988, and she's served USC ever since. She joined the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics as its youngest biostatistician - a role that would evolve alongside the department over the years.
Four Arnold School faculty members awarded Two Thumbs Up Awards from Student Disability Resource Center
Kersten Cope, Alicia Flach, Myriam Torres and Yanan Zhang were recognized by the Student Disability Resource Center with 2025 Two Thumbs Up Awards for going above and beyond to support students with disabilities.
50 Careers for 50 Years: Anja Zgodic
Since graduating with a Ph.D. in Biostatistics in 2023, Anja Zgodic has worked at the science-based Berkshire Hathaway company, Lubrizol. As a Senior Data Scientist/Statistician, Zgodic says she uses her Arnold School degree every day.
Stella Self to develop new ways to monitor spread of vector-borne diseases
With $3.7 million from the National Institutes of Health, Self will collaborate with colleagues from multiple institutions on a project that, over time, will save many more millions in the cost of surveillance efforts to track vector-borne diseases.