Alumni in statistics
According to a survey sent to alumni of the master's program in statistics at Uppsala University, respondents were overwhelmingly positive, with 98% stating that they were glad they had studied on the program.
The job market prospects for students from the program are very bright. Most respondents reported a seamless transition into the workforce, with a majority landing their first job before completing the program and 95% having a job within five months of graduation.
Meet our previous students
Our former students talk about where they work today, what they do at their jobs and how the education in statistics has helped them. They also offer some advice to current and future statistics students.
Lovisa Vildö – project leader at Research Institutes of Sweden
Lovisa Vildö began studying the Bachelor's Programme in Political Science in Uppsala. It was within the framework of that program that she took her first statistics course. She had a hard time choosing a major so she ended up taking a Bachelor’s degree in both development studies and statistics. After that, Lovisa continued with Master's studies in political science and statistics and graduated in 2017.
Where are you working now and what is your current position? On a typical day (or week) in this position, what do you do?
Today I work as a project manager at RISE (Research Institutes of Sweden) within the Social and Health Impact Center – a national knowledge center to increase society’s ability to design, test and measure proactive and preventive welfare solutions.
My job is very varied, which makes it difficult to describe a typical work week. During a week, I have time to coach civil society actors in how to strengthen their ability to create long-term change, develop preventive work procedures so that the social services can better help children and young people at risk of crime and conduct talks to inspire to a better governance in Sweden.
What was your first job after graduation?
My first job was as an analyst at Kairos Future – a company that works with strategy development and future analysis.
To what extent is what you learned during your studies in Statistics at Uppsala University applicable in your current job?
The main and most important contribution is about the fact that the education has developed my critical and logical thinking at the same time as I can appreciate that I am able to solve complicated problems. I work at a research institute where we develop methods for measuring elusive values in different domains. It is then required that you can easily familiarise yourself with different research fields and see what advantages and disadvantages there are with existing methods, while at the same time having the courage to challenge them and test new ones.
Why did you choose to study statistics at Uppsala University?
That it became statistics at Uppsala University was actually almost a coincidence. I applied for the Bachelor’s Programme in Political Science in Uppsala because it was considered the best political science Bachelor’s programme in Sweden. Once there, statistics was a compulsory course, and I realised relatively quickly that I thought statistics was both fun and useful, which led me to decide to take more statistics courses.
What is your best memory from your time at Uppsala University?
Wow, what a difficult question! The time at Uppsala University was so incredibly fun and educational that it is impossible for me to choose a memory – which is perhaps not so strange as I studied for seven years.
What advice would you give to current and future students in statistics?
Do not give up! Statistics is sometimes a difficult and challenging subject, but at the same time so rewarding once the penny drops.
Bolin Wo – biostatistician at Karolinska Institutet
Bolin Wu finished his Bachelor of Statistics (financial econometrics and actuarial science orientation) at Tianjin University of Finance and Economics in China. After that, he came to Uppsala to study at the Master's Programme in Statistics.
Where are you working now and what is your current position? On a typical day (or week) in this position, what do you do?
Now I am working as a biostatistician at Karolinska Institutet. On a typical day, I help my colleagues with data harmonisation. I also perform statistical analyses on exploratory data.
What was your first job after graduation?
I started working in October 2021, so working as biostatistician is my first job.
To what extent is what you learned during your studies in Statistics at Uppsala University applicable in your current job?
To a great extent. I have a lot of use of the R programming skills that I developed during my Master's study. In my job, knowledge of multivariate analysis, generalised linear models, and structural equation modelling is very useful.
Why did you choose to study Statistics at Uppsala University?
I chose to study at Uppsala University because I was an exchange student back in 2017, and I loved the studying atmosphere here at the Department of Statistics. The relationship between teachers and students made me feel comfortable, especially when I had questions, and the teachers were always welcoming.
What is your best memory from your time at Uppsala University?
The times when working together with classmates as a group.
What advice would you give to current and future students of Statistics?
From the perspective of an international student, if you want to stay in Sweden to work, I would suggest that you explore what you want to do in the future.
Statistics can be used in many fields. Are you interested in finance, academic research, internet companies, or something else? Some fields require graduates with strong programming skills, some require a good mathematics foundation, etc.
With a clear goal, you can use your time smarter and it will be easier to achieve what you want. If it is difficult to find what you want, finding what you do not want to do is also great. Besides, it is good to be open-minded. In Sweden, there are many opportunities to get in touch with people from different cultural backgrounds.
Erik Stenberg – data scientist at Spotify
Erik Stenberg studied on the Master's Programme in Statistics at Uppsala University and graduated in the spring of 2019.
Where are you working now and what is your current position? On a typical day (or week) in this position, what do you do?
Today I work as a data scientist on Spotify. My team is developing Spotify’s A/B testing platform. Our goal is that all creative feature teams (who develop Spotify’s various apps) should be able to test their ideas on real users in randomised tests and get reliable and statistically accurate results. We want to be data-driven, and avoid trusting our gut feeling.
What was your first job after graduation?
My first job after graduation was also at Spotify. Then in another team that tried to identify fraudulent users using statistical methods and models, or “machine learning” as people like to call them.
To what extent is what you learned during your studies in statistics at Uppsala University applicable in your current job?
My education has really been a door opener. The labor market is screaming for people who master statistical methods and can apply them in practice in large systems with billions of observations every day.
Why did you choose to study statistics at Uppsala University?
I chose to continue studying statistics after the introductory course simply because I thought it was very fun. I've never been very keen on maths, but statistics have something more. It is easy to understand how important it is to be able to critically review everything you read, especially in these times.
What is your best memory from your time at Uppsala University?
My best memory from my time at Uppsala University has to do with the people and the student life. Uppsala is a very fun city to study in and I have met friends for life.
What advice would you give to current and future students in statistics?
No one will pay you to do statistical wonders with pen and paper – you have to start writing code. Much more important than the language you choose is that you start in time. The first language is always the most difficult, then it goes fast. And learn SQL, it goes quickly and takes you surprisingly far.
Mathias Lilja – lead analyst at Quantify Research
Mathias Lilja has a Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s degree in statistics from Uppsala University with additional courses in economics. Graduated in the spring semester 2018.
Where are you working now and what is your current position? On a typical day (or week) in this position, what do you do?
I work at Quantify Research in Stockholm as a Lead Analyst. We work as consultants within real-world evidence, data analytics, modelling and market access in health economics and outcomes research (HEOR). During a normal working week, I plan and carry out research studies in health care based on observational data from, among others, the National Board of Health and Welfare’s national patient and prescription registers. I spend many hours in the programming language R with implementing the analyses we previously wrote in protocols and statistical analysis plans together with our customers (who usually come from the pharmaceutical industry). I also conduct some modelling in R and Excel/VBA about the cost-effectiveness of new drugs so that these can be subsidized in Swedish health care.
What was your first job after graduation?
My first full-time job after graduation is my current job.
To what extent is what you learned during your studies in Statistics at Uppsala University applicable in your current job?
Through a deeper understanding of statistics, I have been able to take on more advanced research studies and have an understanding of the different challenges that arise in each study. By having taken a course in R, I can also write code that meets the requirements for transparency and quality when publishing a research study.
Why did you choose to study statistics at Uppsala University?
I started in the business and economics programme at Uppsala University and pretty quickly developed an interest in statistics and economics. I realised that there were great opportunities in statistics and data analysis in the job market and that it is relatively future-proof as more and more data are produced with each passing day.
What is your best memory from your time at Uppsala University?
Outside the studies: friends, community and parties at the student nations. Within the studies: self-study in statistics in the form of algebra on the whiteboard at Ekonomikum with fellow students.
What advice would you give to current and future students in statistics?
Knowledge in statistics is extremely valuable in virtually all areas. Put at least as much focus on understanding and being able to explain the simpler methods as understanding more advanced topics. Apply for a job with us, I would like to see more competent statisticians as colleagues.