Guide for the New Statistical Consultant: Some Suggestions and Three Key Questions to Ask

Note: There is now a newer book, "Hints for the New Statistical Consultant," which includes most of the material in this book.

This book is written for individuals with a degree in statistics or closely related field who think they may be interested in statistical consulting, but have little or no experience (which in the beginning, none of us have). There are books which focus on communicating with the client, methods of analysis, and the financial aspects of the consulting business. This book simply offers a few tips that, hopefully, will help in understanding the researcher’s data, in order to answer the questions that are asked or perhaps should have been asked. There is no substitute for experience, but there are things you can do, which should help, while you are gaining that experience.