From media houses to a scientist’s lab, you can find him/her. Whether it is a simple presentation or complex data, you can find a statistician’s virtual imprint on it. It may seem drab to many, but if you have a head for statistics, many regular careers could be right up your street.

EducationThis subject involves the collection, analysis, interpretation, explanation and presentation of data. The University of Delhi (DU) offers it at the undergraduate as well as postgraduate level. DU colleges offering the honours programme in statistics are Hindu, Kirori Mal, Ramjas, Lady Shri Ram, Sri Venkateswara, PGDAV, Ram Lal Anand as also Ramanujan which was added last year.

“Statistics are a way of life for me. They are a decision-making tool. Knowledge of this discipline is required everywhere from media houses to any scientist’s lab. It is needed everywhere,” says Kumar Abhay, a postgraduate from the 2000 batch.

There are many job opportunities after a postgraduate degree in the discipline . One can opt for analytics, finance, actuarial science, software development and many more options . In the government sector, postgraduates can apply for positions in the Indian Statistical Service (ISS), Subordinate Statistical Service (SSS), the ministry of statistics and programme implementation. Else, get into avenues such as banking and statistical software development.
Postgraduates get placed in organisations like Accenture, GE Capital, Genpact, Cognizant, American Express, RBI, HDFC, HSBC, HP, Indian Market Research Bureau and others.

“Statistics make you understand about numbers . They deal with uncertainty . To understand statistics, one should have the ability to solve someone else’s problem,” says Debasree Goswami, associate professor in statistics, Hindu College, DU.

AT A GLANCE

Aspirants should have read maths in class XII to be eligible for the UG programme Cut-off for a Bachelor with honours in statistics (2013): 94% to 97% MA/MSc: Entrance test on June 21, 2014