The Dissertation

The 3 month dissertation will involve the application of statistical methodology to a substantive problem. For the MSc pathway in medical statistics this will be an application in the biomedical or health sciences, similarly for the MSc in pharmaceutical statistics. The dissertation associated with the MSc in environmental statistics will involve an application in the environmental sciences.

In 2006, one student went on a field trip to the Etna (Sicily, Italy) to study vulcanic activity. Her thesis studied looked at new statistical methods for relating spatial-temporal data of eruptions, dating back to 1329. There are opportunities for a limited number of students to take an overseas placement for their dissertation, with supervision provided by our international collaborators. For example, in 2002 one student took a placement in Curitiba (Brazil) and in 2003 one student took a placement in Munich (Germany). In 2004 and again in 2006, two students went to Curitiba (Brazil) and one to Baltimore (USA).