Raji Balasubramanian (center) walking on campus with two students

About the MS in Biostatistics Progam

30 credits · 3–4 semesters · project or thesis

What is biostatistics?

Biostatistics is a sister field to statistics that focuses on data about human health. Biostatisticians:

  • analyze data
  • design and analyze clinical and population studies in biomedical research
  • develop and validate new methods and tools
  • communicate results to scientific and general audiences

You don’t need a science background, just curiosity. Some biology helps but is not required.

How you’ll learn

The curriculum follows the full cycle of study design and data analysis:

ask a question → explore the data → model it → communicate the findings.

Scientific context
A public health core, plus electives across the health sciences.

Programming and visualization
R and SAS, with reproducible data analysis.

Modeling uncertainty
Biostatistics core courses, plus electives in epidemiology, statistics and computer science.

What the program looks like

17 credits Biostats core: methods, data science, advanced R and specialized electives

6 credits Culminating experience: a project course plus an elective, or a thesis

4 credits Electives: biostatistics, statistics, epidemiology, computer science and more

3 credits Public health core

Students without prior statistics coursework also take 0–7 credits of biostats foundation courses (regression, probability and inference, computing with R).

A course is usually 3 credits.
ComponentCreditsWhat it covers
Biostats foundation0–7Regression, probability and inference, and computing with R. Math/stat majors with prior coursework can waive these.
Public health core3Includes a 1-credit public health class.
Biostats core17Topics in biostatistics, data science and epidemiology; advanced R; specialized electives such as survival analysis, Bayesian statistics and clinical trials.
Electives4Biostatistics, statistics, epidemiology, computer science and more.
Culminating experience6A project-based course (3) plus one elective (3), or an MS thesis (6).

How long does it take?

  • With a math or statistics background: about 3 semesters, or 2 semesters plus a summer (30 credits).
  • Without prior statistics: about 4 semesters (30–37 credits, including the foundation courses).

Culminating experience

You finish the program by bringing your training together in one of two ways.

Project course: Biostatistics in Action (BIOSTATS 690E)

This is where your biostatistics and public health education all comes together. You work on a real-world public health problem as a biostatistician: you develop your own research protocol (literature review, study design, statistical analysis plan, and power and sample size calculation), carry out the analysis, write a manuscript and present your findings. Taught by Alex Knee, an applied biostatistician and epidemiologist with 20 years of experience at an academic medical center. More on the course →

Examples of capstone projects:

  • A Difference-in-Differences Analysis of State Medicaid Expansion and Cost-Related Delay of Care. Cole Spinale (MS 2026)
  • Comparing Multivariable Prediction Models to Classify Current Smoking Status Among U.S. Adults Using Demographic and Socioeconomic Characteristics. Jordyn Sullivan (MS 2026)

MS thesis

Alternatively, you can do a 6-credit MS thesis, working one-on-one with a faculty advisor on an original research project.

Examples of MS theses:

  • Public masking mandates and COVID-19 growth rates. Angus Wong (MS 2021); published in Epidemiology (2022).
  • Bayesian spatial models of birth weight in Ghana. Barbara Mottey (MS 2021).
  • Spatio-temporal clusters of SARS-CoV-2 infections. Keith Allison (MS 2022).
  • Estimating the Change in Expected All-Cause ED Hospitalizations During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Massachusetts. Amani Chehimi (MS 2025).
  • Statistical Methods for Regression Analysis with Interval-censored Covariates. Lin Cai (MS 2026).

The 4+1 MS

Undergraduates at UMass and the Five Colleges can start the MS in their senior year and finish in one extra year. Learn about the 4+1 →

Additional resources