Need help..Stats Major?

College Majors
1

I’m in a tough situation (not a bad one, but it’s a tough decision). I want to do something like Nate Silver, the guy who forecasts baseball games and predicts all kinds of stuff (like presidential elections). Right now (I’m a senior in HS) my major at the University of Alabama is set as mechanical engineering. I would be fine doing engineering, and I am considering it because of great job opportunities. But, statistics is my passion, and I’m good at it. I guess I have a few questions.

  1. Is statistics a hard field to get a job in?
  2. Would I be fine with an Undergraduate degree only, or would I have to go to get a Master's, PHD, etc. (which would obviously cost more, because I'm going to Alabama on a full tuition scholarship and statistics is not offered there.)
  3. Are there any other majors I should consider that maybe combine both engineering and statistics?
  4. Any advice in general would be appreciated

Thanks everyone

2

  1. No, it’s not. There are lots of statistics jobs, and many jobs in fields related to statistics like actuarial science, data science, informatics, etc.

  2. You could get a job as an entry-level analyst to start out with just a BA in statistics, but you will probably eventually want to get an MA in statistics, as most statistician positions (and data scientist positions) do require an MA or a PhD.

the way to study statistics at Alabama is to [major in math with a concentration/track in mathematical statistics](http://math.ua.edu/undergraduate-program/major-program/). Apparently, many math majors at Alabama complete a second major in computer science or electrical engineering.

There are many many many MANY lucrative opportunities that combine math/statistics and computer science - data science is the one I referenced above; I saw a job opening today for a data scientist that paid $140K in my mid-level cost-of-living city, and that’s not uncommon. Data scientists are well-paid. The downside is that currently most data scientists do have PhDs, although that may change as more master’s programs are created in the field. You need a strong understanding of both statistics and computer science (and research methods) to do data science - hence the demand for PhDs.

The Department of Information Systems, Statistics, and Management Science also has some statistics and operations research courses that will be relevant.