Medical Statistics (MSc)

After a twenty year career in the financial services sector, I decided to pursue a long term ambition to work in the field of medical statistics. After studying Mathematics and Statistics in Australia and the United States, I felt that the LSHTM was the best place to obtain training for this career change. For me, the history of the school and its achievements were a big part of its appeal.
The course has been challenging, but in a stimulating and enjoyable way. The lecturers and tutors are supportive and approachable, and have a vast range of experience and knowledge. The theory is also backed up with practical applications and hands-on analysis of real health problems.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of the course is mixing with such a broad range of experienced and friendly people. Working alongside doctors and experienced health professionals is a new experience for me, and it has added a huge amount to my learning and enjoyment of the course. The weekly Public Health Lectures Series which the school runs for all students has also been eye-opening, and a wonderful opportunity to hear world-leading experts speak about the latest research and most pressing health issues.
After completing the course my goal is to work on health challenges affecting developing countries. I feel very positive that my year at LSHTM will provide the best foundation for making this move.

At undergraduate level I completed a BA in Mathematics and French at UCD in Dublin, graduating in 2014. I was unsure about my next step; whether it should be to search for a job in finance or to take on further study. A family member working in Medical Statistics suggested doing a Master’s and I soon realised that I could make a real difference to people’s lives by becoming a medical statistician. On being accepted to the School, there was no doubt that it would be the best choice and the course certainly lived up to expectations.

The content is in depth and the learning curve over the year is steep with the rewards at the end being amazing. The course is very interactive with lots of time spent with lecturers and tutors who have vast experience in up to date medical research. Assignments and projects are based on real life situations which keeps you focused on how exactly your work can impact the world of medicine.

Obtaining the MSc Medical Statistics at the School has put me in a position where I can choose a job I really feel I would enjoy, opening up a huge amount of possibilities.

I did my BSc in Statistics at the University of Malawi from 2007 to 2010. After graduating, I worked with College of Medicine of the University of Malawi for 2 years as a biostatistician. I was interested in proceeding with a career in health research but strongly emphasizing on advanced statistical methods in epidemiology and clinical trials. I searched for several schools worldwide offering courses directly matching my career prospects. I found that the School had all it takes to mould me into a first class researcher since the structure of its highly reputable Medical Statistics course captures all necessary attributes for a global course that can help in solving global health issues.

Enrolling for an interdisciplinary medical statistics course equipped me with skills in designing successful disease management programs, providing strategies of conquering major health problems through evidence-based research and measuring progress of the health systems using relevant statistical methods. Dedicated experts in the fields of epidemiology, clinical trials and public health within the School made my studies more enjoyable than expected. I am now looking forward to contributing in health research implementation through innovative approaches especially the use of local data to solving health problems.

My two favourite things about the School are the students and the staff. The diverse, intelligent and enthusiastic collection of students have travelled from scores of countries, all with a passion both to learn with and from one another and then to apply that learning to advance medicine somewhere in the world. Lectures are given by experts working in the field and are full of anecdotes from recent research. It’s those small details which really bring a lecture to life, illustrating the subject much more than slides full of facts and figures.