The department aims to contribute to virtually all areas of statistical science, including the development of novel statistical theory and methodology. Specific areas of excellence include Bayesian statistics, spatio-temporal statistics, statistical learning and biostatistics.

Research is directed toward modern and emerging areas of interest. A large portion of the department’s faculty and students are involved in interdisciplinary research and make significant scientific contributions beyond the field of statistics. Faculty members are highly successful at securing competitive grants from various research funding agencies, including the National Science Foundation (NSF) and National Institutes of Health (NIH). In addition, the department is a partner in administering the NSF-funded Mathematical Biosciences Institute on the Ohio State campus.