PSI Webinar: Surrogacy
This webinar will provide an overview of surrogacy for licensing and reimbursement. In turn, the need of extensions of the SPIRIT and CONSORT statement will be defined and outlined, with case studies to support.
I first considered medical statistics as a career while in sixth form. I was becoming increasingly interested in studying maths at university but equally drawn to the health sciences and determined to be involved in something that positively impacted people. Becoming a medical statistician seemed like a great way to combine these interests in a challenging and rewarding way.
I hadn’t considered doing a placement year until I arrived at the University of Kent. The maths department’s placement team held a series of talks during freshers’ week that persuaded me to add ‘Year in Industry’ to my Mathematics and Statistics BSc. A placement sounded like a great way to use my skills in the real world by being a statistician for a year and enriching my experience.
I applied for roles at various pharmaceutical companies while in my second year and landed a 12-month Biostatistician placement with a contract research organization (CRO) called Parexel.
At a time when most companies had moved to remote working models for placement students, I was pleased that Parexel made the Sheffield office available full-time, 5 days a week. I was able to get to know other students who were on placement with Parexel (there were 11 of us in my year) as well as permanent staff from whom I received lots of face-to-face support. I also benefited from having not one, but two mentors (an experienced statistician and an experienced programmer) who have supported me from day one.
Throughout my placement, I worked on a wide variety of tasks across multiple projects. I didn’t feel like an intern at all and had the chance to program everything from simple data displays to more complex statistical models, like negative binomial regression and mixed models. I also wrote a statistical analysis plan, developed TLF shells (a set of templates of statistical outputs for a study), delivered a presentation to the entire UK biostatistics department, and liaised with external clients over statistical issues. This is all experience that will be invaluable should I return to the pharmaceutical industry after university.
A particular highlight of my year was the progress I’ve been able to make in statistical programming. Programming with a purpose in mind, coupled with some tough challenges, motivated me to improve. My skills have progressed far beyond what I’ve been able to pick up at university, and I am now proficient in both SAS and R (widely used statistical programming languages). Importantly, I now also have the confidence to tackle complex programming problems, which will be immensely helpful in the final year of my degree and beyond. I highly recommend a placement year if you enjoy programming or if your chosen career path is programming-heavy; applying your knowledge in a work environment will really help you build both confidence and competence.
During my placement, I’ve also discovered how varied the role of a statistician is. Aside from the more obvious statistical aspects of the work, statisticians also lead teams, liaise with clients, write complex documents, and plan long-term deliverables for clients. There are various pathways within statistics, too; there are management and client-oriented roles as well as more academic ones. While on placement, I had the chance to talk to statisticians at both ends of the spectrum, which gave me a better idea of the kind of role that would suit me best.
In conclusion, if you are unsure about taking a placement year, I encourage you to go for it. Aside from the obvious in gaining invaluable experience in my chosen field, my placement has helped me grow as a person. I now feel much more confident in being able to overcome challenges, grow in my abilities and bring something positive to a company. Importantly, I also now know that I have what it takes to become a good medical statistician and make a real difference to patients when I return to the industry after university.