Biostatistician job description: duties, skills and qualifications.

Core duties

16

O*NET task statements

Preparation

Job Zone 5 of 5

extensive preparation

Typical entry education

Master's degree

BLS 2025–35 · broader occupation

Median pay

$105,650

BLS May 2025 · broader occupation

1. Draw conclusions or make predictions, based on data summaries or statistical analyses. importance 4.5 of 5
2. Analyze clinical or survey data, using statistical approaches such as longitudinal analysis, mixed-effect modeling, logistic regression analyses, and model-building techniques. importance 4.4 of 5
3. Write detailed analysis plans and descriptions of analyses and findings for research protocols or reports. importance 4.4 of 5
4. Calculate sample size requirements for clinical studies. importance 4.3 of 5
5. Design research studies in collaboration with physicians, life scientists, or other professionals. importance 4.3 of 5
6. Prepare tables and graphs to present clinical data or results. importance 4.3 of 5
7. Write program code to analyze data with statistical analysis software. importance 4.3 of 5
8. Provide biostatistical consultation to clients or colleagues. importance 4.2 of 5
9. Review clinical or other medical research protocols and recommend appropriate statistical analyses. importance 4.2 of 5
10. Develop or implement data analysis algorithms. importance 4.2 of 5
11. Determine project plans, timelines, or technical objectives for statistical aspects of biological research studies. importance 4.2 of 5
12. Prepare statistical data for inclusion in reports to data monitoring committees, federal regulatory agencies, managers, or clients. importance 4.2 of 5
13. Plan or direct research studies related to life sciences. importance 4.0 of 5
14. Prepare articles for publication or presentation at professional conferences. importance 4.0 of 5
15. Monitor clinical trials or experiments to ensure adherence to established procedures or to verify the quality of data collected. importance 3.9 of 5
16. Write research proposals or grant applications for submission to external bodies. importance 3.8 of 5

Work activities O*NET rates most important here: Analyzing Data or Information, Working with Computers, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Making Decisions and Solving Problems and Processing Information.

Knowledge areas: Mathematics, English Language, Computers and Electronics and Medicine and Dentistry.

Software O*NET lists for this occupation: IBM SPSS Statistics, SAS, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft PowerPoint, Python. These are examples O*NET records for the job, not a list of tools every employer uses or a checklist of what you must know.

• Education: BLS lists a master's degree as the typical entry-level education for the broader occupation.
• Experience: BLS lists no work experience in a related occupation as typical to enter.
• Training on the job: BLS lists no typical on-the-job training once hired.
• Preparation: O*NET places the job in Job Zone 5 of 5 (extensive preparation). Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations.
• Licenses and certifications: not listed here. A license is a legal requirement set by a state; a certification is a credential from a private or professional body. Rules vary by state and employer, and a missing entry on this page does not mean none is required: check with your state's licensing board and see how to become a biostatistician.

Most O*NET's occupation experts for this occupation (58%) name a master's degree as the education the job requires.

Job title: Biostatistician
[Company] · [City, State] · [Full-time or part-time] · [Pay range, where your state requires one]

About the role
[Company] is hiring a Biostatistician to develop and apply biostatistical theory and methods to the study of life sciences.
[One sentence on your team and why this role matters.]

What you will do
- Draw conclusions or make predictions, based on data summaries or statistical analyses.
- Analyze clinical or survey data, using statistical approaches such as longitudinal analysis, mixed-effect modeling, logistic regression analyses, and model-building techniques.
- Write detailed analysis plans and descriptions of analyses and findings for research protocols or reports.
- Calculate sample size requirements for clinical studies.
- Design research studies in collaboration with physicians, life scientists, or other professionals.
- Prepare tables and graphs to present clinical data or results.
- Write program code to analyze data with statistical analysis software.
- Provide biostatistical consultation to clients or colleagues.

What we are looking for
- [Education: BLS lists a master's degree as typical for this occupation; set the level this role truly needs]
- [Experience: BLS lists no related work experience as typical to enter; set what this role needs]
- Strength in mathematics, complex problem solving and judgment and decision making
- Working knowledge of Mathematics and English Language
- [Software your team uses, e.g. IBM SPSS Statistics or SAS]
- [Any license or certification your state or company requires]

[Schedule, benefits and how to apply]

Illustrative: every name, employer, school, date and number in these samples is fictional or a bracketed placeholder. Replace each bracket with your own true details; never copy a result you did not achieve.

Not a real job posting. This template is TryHired's illustration built from government occupational data. It is not an opening at any employer, and no employer wrote it.

For the broader BLS occupation Statisticians, the median annual wage was $105,650 in May 2025. The broader occupation's median hourly wage was $50.79.

BLS counts the O*NET occupation Biostatisticians within Statisticians and publishes no separate wage for it, so the figure is for that broader occupation.

BLS projects employment in the broader occupation Statisticians to grow 11.0% from 2025 to 2035, with about 1,900 openings a year over that period, including openings to replace workers who leave.

See the full biostatistician salary breakdown by percentile, state and metro.

• Read a real biostatistician posting next to the core duties above. Duties it repeats, such as “Draw conclusions or make predictions, based on data summaries or…”, tell you what that employer weighs most; anything it adds is specific to that team.
• Tailor your resume to the posting, not to this page: describe only biostatistician work you have actually done, with your own results.
• Prepare a story for each of the top-rated skills (mathematics and complex problem solving).