Student Spotlight: Sabrina Lin
As a recent graduate (May 2021), what have you been up to?
I am currently an assistant research biostatistician at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) in the Epidemiology and Biostatistics Department. I work with faculty biostatisticians and the investigator to conceive and execute appropriate analyses on various projects across multiple departments within MSK. In addition, I recently participated in an MSK hackathon where I helped build a bookdown in R Markdown to more efficiently compile our department coding resources.
What skills and abilities were you able to develop and enhance when you were a student in the Biostatistics master’s program?
Although I had previous coding experience, the program helped to further develop my coding skills in R and my coding logic. I was introduced to many R packages and coding resources I did not know existed, most of which I continue to use today. My schooling also has taught me how to better troubleshoot my code, which is a very important part of coding! I also was extremely fortunate to be surrounded by many helpful peers who would share their coding advice and insights.
The program also helped me learn how to manage my time more effectively. At one point during my master’s career, I was a full-time student, conducting research, and working as a teaching assistant. Previously, I would never have thought myself capable of taking on that much responsibility while being able to maintain a personal life, but my time at Columbia University taught me how to manage my time and mental bandwidth.
What do you enjoy most about the work you do? What are you most excited about right now?
I have greatly enjoyed the collaborative and supportive learning environment at MSK. The department is very welcoming, and I have felt supported by the faculty members in my respective projects. The other master’s-level biostatisticians have been essential to my ease-in period by providing advice, guidance, and moral support.
I truly love how much learning I am able to do in my job. The master’s-level biostatistician group has a series of trainings covering a multitude of common topics that range from communicating with clinicians to cancer terminology to survival analysis. These have been very helpful, as they have highlighted specific pieces of knowledge that are important or needed frequently within cancer research. Other resources are also compiled for us to refer back to or read through. The department also hosts weekly seminars and meets to review clinical trial protocols. In addition, the master’s-level group has our own talk series, where different research biostatisticians present on their recent work.
What has surprised you about your work thus far?
Although I knew the importance of communication prior to my job at MSK, I am continually surprised by how important effective communication is. Since our work is so collaborative, communication through email and meetings with both statisticians and nonstatisticians is essential to working toward our common goal of advancing cancer research.
What do you wish you’d known during your time as a master’s student at Columbia University?
I wish I had known to be more shameless about asking questions. Not only does this help you realize your strengths and weaknesses, it can also help you identify career interests and paths you did not know exist!
What aspect of or experience in your Biostatistics program at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health did you enjoy the most or find to be the most helpful in preparing for your next steps?
The department is comprised of researchers with a range of interests, which ultimately opened my eyes to the various possibilities of the biostatistics world. It inspired me to explore research topics and areas that I would not have investigated otherwise. Given this, and the opportunities to hear other researchers from other institutions speak about their work through the Levin Lecture Series, as well as researchers from other departments within the Columbia Mailman School, I felt that there was always something more to learn about.