Benn Ekt, Tabb L P, Exum P, Moore R H, Morales K H, Simpson F, Lawrence S A, Bellamy S L
Center for Scientific Diversity, Center for Biostatistics, and Department of Population Health Science and Policy, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY.
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA.
J Stat Educ. 2020;28(3):295-303. doi: 10.1080/10691898.2020.1820409. Epub 2020 Oct 9.
Biostatisticians with advanced degrees are highly sought after. Employment opportunities in the fields of mathematics and statistics are expected to increase dramatically by 2028. Underrepresentation of minorities in biostatistics has been a persistent problem, yielding a demographic landscape that differs substantially from the general US population. In some instances, students may have the appropriate quantitative skills, but are unaware of biostatistics and in other instances, students may not yet have the appropriate quantitative background, but are intellectually capable and willing to shore up those skills once they learn about biostatistics as a viable, exciting career option. Therefore, in order to ensure robust scientific advancement, there must be a concerted effort to increase the pipeline of intellectually talented persons available with exposure to the appropriate quantitative skills who are interested in careers in biostatistics. The overarching goal of this paper is to discuss the development, implementation, and impact of a federally funded pipeline initiative aimed at increasing the number of underrepresented minorities successful in graduate training and professional careers in biostatistics as well as establishing effective mentoring and networking relationships. Our findings provide a roadmap for the development of sustainable initiatives to promote diversity in biostatistics and STEM fields more broadly.
拥有高级学位的生物统计学家备受追捧。预计到2028年，数学和统计学领域的就业机会将大幅增加。少数族裔在生物统计学领域的代表性不足一直是个长期问题，导致该领域的人口结构与美国总体人口有很大差异。在某些情况下，学生可能具备适当的定量技能，但不了解生物统计学；而在其他情况下，学生可能尚未具备适当的定量背景，但有能力且愿意在了解生物统计学是一个可行且令人兴奋的职业选择后提升这些技能。因此，为了确保强大的科学进步，必须共同努力增加有智力天赋且接触过适当定量技能、对生物统计学职业感兴趣的人员数量。本文的总体目标是讨论一项由联邦资助的人才培养计划的发展、实施和影响，该计划旨在增加在生物统计学研究生培训和职业生涯中取得成功的代表性不足的少数族裔人数，并建立有效的指导和人脉关系。我们的研究结果为制定可持续计划提供了路线图，以更广泛地促进生物统计学和STEM领域的多样性。
