by Hyunnam Ryu

When I was an undergraduate student in the Statistics department, I had believed that the most critical ability as a good statistician was to develop a statistical model and draw the results. Yes, it’s important, of course!  That belief persisted throughout my master’s degree. After completing my master’s degree in South Korea, I worked as a statistics consultant for a while. This was the first time I experienced statistical analysis with people who were not statistics majors. However, my strong analytical skills gave me confidence that my clients would be satisfied with the results, whatever data I had.

One day, a customer requested an analysis with data that was very difficult to handle. I processed the data seamlessly, showing off my abilities, and wrote a report for the customer. But then the difficulty came. My client hardly understood my report, and consequently, couldn’t understand the value and skill of my analysis. I was very embarrassed and tried to explain my results to the customer. It was the moment I realized the importance of writing and being considerate of readers. No matter how fancy and up-to-date the statistical models I used and the excellent results I produced, it was useless if customers didn’t understand.

Then, I consulted with an advisor and learned how to write statistical reports from A to Z. At that time, the advisor emphasized the importance of practicing writing. It became clear that I needed to communicate with my customers in addition to analyzing the data and writing a report. And through that experience, I learned to become a good statistician. To become a good analyst, one needs to accurately understand the data’s characteristics, build an appropriate statistical model, and interpret the results in the data context. However, to go further from an analyst to become a good statistician, one needs to persuade clients or others through writing and communication.

To be a good statistician, be a good writer.

Assisting my students as a WIP TA, I felt that more students than I thought were unaware of what makes a good statistician. Sometimes I felt that the students had good analysis results but were not delivering them effectively. I want to help students step up to become good statisticians, just like my advisors did. I would like students to keep in mind that good statistical analysis results from good statisticians become valuable when the other person understands them. To be a good statistician, be a good writer!