Statistical training in Brazilian graduate programs: an analysis of the courses offered

Abstract

Statistics is one of the foundations of science, and its teaching in graduate programs has a direct influence on shaping the next generation of researchers. This study provides a general overview of statistics-related courses in stricto sensu graduate programs in Brazil, based on the analysis of the syllabi of 176,823 courses, of which 12,552 contained content related to statistics. Among the findings, it was observed that only a few programs have mandatory courses specifically related to statistics. The higher the concept of the graduate program according to Capes evaluation, the greater the average number of statistics-related courses offered. However, this relationship is not evident in the mandatory courses. Regarding the content of the courses, they can be divided into two main groups: one with a theoretical foundation in probability and statistics, and another focused on applications and the use of tools. There is a small third group of courses offered in the English language. Finally, the availability of courses related to advanced techniques (such as Machine Learning) is much smaller compared to the offering of statistics-related courses, and it is mainly concentrated in Engineering and Exact and Earth Sciences programs.