MPH605 Foundations of Biostatistics (3 cr.)

This course covers the appropriate use of data in characterizing the health of a population and provides an overview of probability and statistical inference in public health. Students learn the principles of collecting, analyzing, and presenting data. Topics include random variation, confidence intervals, hypothesis testing, chi-square distribution, and linear regression.  Students apply concepts through in-class labs that evaluate statistics used in public health publications.

Upon completion of this course, students are expected to be able to do the following:

1. Describe the role of biostatistics in planning, conducting, analyzing, and interpreting public health research.
2. Apply basic statistical methods commonly used with public health data.
3. Use a statistical software package to perform basic statistical analyses, including descriptive and inferential techniques.
4. Identify the principal national and state public health data sets that are available for analyses.
5. Articulate the benefits and pitfalls of using statistical significance in interpreting findings.
6. Evaluate the use and interpretation of statistical analyses in public health publications.