BSTA5030: Professional Practice in Biostatistics

2026 unit information

This unit of study is only available for students who are trainees in the NSW Ministry of Health Biostatistics Training Program. It is undertaken in the student’s final semester of enrolment to coincide with the timing of their final assessment interview. Students will prepare and submit an Evidence Portfolio for assessment, which is evaluated for both breadth and quality of evidence. This document is used to demonstrate the student’s competency acquired through coursework and applied workplace practice across the domains of biostatistical design principles, data management and analysis, professional practice, communication, and management. Successful completion of this unit demonstrates a readiness to commence a career as a professional biostatistician.

Unit details and rules

Managing faculty or University school:

Medicine and Health

Details

Study level	Postgraduate
Academic unit	Public Health
Credit points	6

Enrolment rules

Prerequisites: ?	60 credit points including PUBH5215 and BSTA5211
Corequisites: ?	None
Prohibitions: ?	BSTA5020 or BSTA5021
Assumed knowledge: ?	None

Learning outcomes

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. Apply the knowledge and skills learned from coursework to support the design of studies and optimisation of the use of health surveillance data
LO2. Provides high-level and accurate biostatistical advice to colleagues who do not have specialised knowledge of biostatistics to support health system priorities
LO3. Efficiently manages and manipulates large administrative and health data sets incorporating analytical reasoning, relevant quality control and maintains appropriate documentation
LO4. Leads a range of complex biostatistical analyses, including of linked health data and complex study designs
LO5. Summarises and interprets the results of biostatistical analyses involving multivariable regression, and demonstrates an understanding of the limitations of the study design, data, and analytical approach

Unit availability

This section lists the session, attendance modes and locations the unit is available in. There is a unit outline for each of the unit availabilities, which gives you information about the unit including assessment details and a schedule of weekly activities.

The outline is published 2 weeks before the first day of teaching. You can look at previous outlines for a guide to the details of a unit.

Session	MoA ?	Location	Outline ?
Semester 1 2025	Professional practice	Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney	View
Semester 2 2025	Professional practice	Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney	View

Session	MoA ?	Location	Outline ?
Semester 1 2026	Professional practice	Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney	Outline unavailable
Semester 2 2026	Professional practice	Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney	Outline unavailable

There are no availabilities for previous years.

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Modes of attendance (MoA)

This refers to the Mode of attendance (MoA) for the unit as it appears when you’re selecting your units in Sydney Student. Find more information about modes of attendance on our website.

Important enrolment information

Departmental permission requirements

If you see the ‘Departmental Permission’ tag below a session, it means you need faculty or school approval to enrol. This may be because it’s an advanced unit, clinical placement, offshore unit, internship or there are limited places available.

You will be prompted to apply for departmental permission when you select this unit in Sydney Student.

Read our information on departmental permission.