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What Is a Biostatistician? 2026 Career Guide
Ever wondered what a biostatistician does? Learn what you need to know to get started in this career.
June 14, 2022
Article
Public health careers make a meaningful impact on community wellness and health policy. Learn more about this important field with our helpful resources.

Learn more about public health
University of Michigan
Skills you'll gain: Community Health, Public Health, Health Disparities, Health Promotion, Health Assessment, Social Determinants Of Health, Epidemiology, Health Policy, Health Systems, Data Collection, Preventative Care
Intermediate · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

Johns Hopkins University
Skills you'll gain: Training Programs, Education and Training, Smart Goals, Community Health, Train The Trainer, Patient Education And Counseling, Educational Materials, Health Education, Adult Education, Needs Assessment, Planning, Supervision
Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months

Johns Hopkins University
Skills you'll gain: Epidemiology, Public Health, Data Presentation, Public Health and Disease Prevention, Trend Analysis, Geographic Information Systems, Health Policy, Data Visualization Software, Chronic Diseases, GIS Software, Health Systems, Infectious Diseases, Biostatistics, Risk Analysis, Investigation, Health Care, Health Disparities, Community Health, Data Analysis, Statistics
Beginner · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months
Public health covers a broad range of skills and careers, from epidemiology to health education to policy development and beyond. On Coursera, you'll find the resources you need to accelerate your career, whether you're just beginning your journey in public health or are prepared to take on more responsibility. Explore public health topics, including:
Imperial College London offers the Statistical Analysis with R for Public Health Specialization. You can also take open courses from Imperial’s Global MPH, including Introduction to Statistics & Data Analysis in Public Health, Linear Regression in R for Public Health, and Logistic Regression in R for Public Health. These courses build from fundamentals to applied modeling.
Epidemiology courses cover a variety of topics essential for understanding the distribution and determinants of health and diseases in populations. These include the basics of epidemiologic methods, study design, and biostatistics. Learners will explore topics such as disease outbreak investigation, data collection and data analysis, and risk factor identification. Advanced courses might cover areas like molecular epidemiology, advanced biostatistical techniques, and epidemiology of chronic and infectious diseases. Practical exercises and case studies help learners apply these concepts to real-world public health scenarios, enhancing their ability to conduct research and inform public health policy.
Health policy involves the principles that state how healthcare is given and its goals for improvement. It can be based on a state, national, or global level. It can also apply at a clinical and hospital level. Health policies are implemented for the safety and security of the public and can vary between places.
A Master of Public Health (MPH) is a graduate-level degree that focuses on studying public health issues, like community awareness, communicable diseases, violence and prevention, water treatment, mental health, disparities in health care access, social isolation, food security, and healthy nutrition. An MPH is not a research-based or thesis degree. It focuses more on practical applications, like improving the health of a particular population through a career in a field like health care, education, public policy, administration, emergency management, or communications. People who choose to earn an MPH often have the option to choose a specialty, like epidemiology, biostatistics, maternal and child health, nutrition, environmental health, or public health administration.