GREETING FROM THE CHAIR

It is my pleasure to greet you and share some information about the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and the Arnold School of Public Health (ASPH) at the University of South Carolina. Welcome to our web pages. There is quite a lot of information about our department and the school on these pages, so we hope you will enjoy exploring who we are, what we do, and what we have to offer. The Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics is a vibrant, creative, and productive unit that is highly regarded by our colleagues in public health and across the campus. We take pride that University President and former ASPH Dean Harris Pastides has his academic appointment in our department. In addition to a variety of recognized research programs, our department has a strong tradition of providing excellent training through master’s and doctoral degree programs in both disciplines.

Epidemiologists and biostatisticians are in great demand, and there are many exciting career opportunities in both disciplines. Our graduates are especially well prepared after having been through our program because of the foundation laid in both epidemiology and biostatistics. These degree programs prepare our students for careers in academic research and teaching, corporate research, and in the public sector in government and nonprofit health agencies, academic, public health, or private industry careers. Our graduates who have gone on to work in all these settings have routinely expressed their appreciation for the preparation they received in our department. If you are a prospective student, please take time to explore the information about our faculty, their research, and the various degree programs and application information on this web site.

The Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics has an exciting, rapidly growing research program. Areas of faculty research and expertise in biostatistics and research methods include singular information, GEEs, statistical computing, Bayesian hierarchical modeling, spatial and environmental modeling in epidemiology, survival analysis, and analyses for complex sampling strategies. Research and expertise in specific content areas encompass cancer, diabetes, obesity, physical activity, nutrition, and children’s health, with developing research in women’s health, Alzheimer's and aging studies, molecular epidemiology, mental health, environmental health, and health disparities. The department also has a history of significant collaboration with public and private health agencies and institutions including strong collaborative ties with the Department of Health and Environmental Control of South Carolina. By clicking on the Faculty & Staff link on the left, you can see a list of faculty, all of whom have a link to a page describing research interests, background, courses, and publications. We anticipate new faculty hires who will complement our current expertise.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. If you are a prospective student, we would be happy to put you in touch with faculty or students who have common interests. We also encourage a visit to Columbia and the USC campus to learn about the quality of life and opportunities for faculty and students. If this is your first visit to our website, we welcome you and hope you will find this site to be interesting and informative. We are even more interesting and welcoming in person, so come see us.

With best wishes,
Robert E. McKeown, Ph.D., FACE
Professor and Chair