In a Nutshell
I am a Biostatistician - a career branch of statistics primarily with applications in
public health to study questions related to disease, drug doses, medical
devices, environment, and other (to me) fascinating topics. Although
Biostatistics is slightly more balanced, the overall field of Statistics is
still heavily dominated by males, many of them coming from countries whose
secondary math scores surpass those of the United States
(http://nces.ed.gov/surveys/pisa/).
Brief Intro To My Career Choice
Just as I did years ago, many high schoolers get to enjoy a
hands-on lesson in probability and statistics using (and of course eating)
M&M’s. The simple playfulness of that lesson combined with my
preference of math homework and tests over tedious writing assignments
influenced my decision to take both AP Statistics and Calculus (at a local
college) during my senior year. Fortunately for me, both math teachers
that year were enthralling and I found the classes enjoyable. From my
memory this initiated my decision to head down the path of a math major.
The Math Disconnect
Through many years of tutoring, an education in math and
statistics (both undergraduate and graduate), I have seen my fair share of
professors and students. I never claim to be any kind of expert but
over time I have become accustomed to the struggles that students encounter
with their math courses. I believe that there is a disconnect between
learning the concepts and finding appreciating for their application in life.
Prodigies In The Classroom
One of the common misconceptions about math is that only the
smartest kids can figure it out.
In high school, college, and even graduate school I considered
myself a mediocre student; I rarely went above and beyond in any of my classes
and although I didn’t get C’s after high school, I certainly didn’t end up with
all A’s.
You really don’t have to be the prodigy of your classroom to love,
learn, and appreciate math. Our goal is to change the perception, to help
guide you towards that career that intrigues you, or just to create a
connection between that pesky topic and it’s importance in life.
Welcome to notAprodigy!
