UnitLevel 5Postgraduate

EPM5003 Principles of statistical inference

Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences

EPM5003 Principles of statistical inference is a level 5, 6-credit-point, postgraduate unit from the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, offered in 2022 in Semester 1 and Semester 2 at Alfred Hospital. It has no prerequisites and unlocks 9 units.

Credit points
6
Offered in 2022
Semester 1, Semester 2
Alfred Hospital
Assessment
No exam
2 tasks

This is the 2022 handbook entry. See the 2027 entry.

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Requisites

Enrolment rules

Prerequisite: (EPM5002 and EPM5014) or EPM5026.

Prohibition: This unit is only available to students enrolled in the Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma or Masters of Biostatistics.

Overview

The unit will introduce the core concepts of statistical inference, beginning with estimators, confidence intervals, type I and II errors and p-values. The emphasis will be on the practical interpretation of these concepts in biostatistical contexts, including an emphasis on the difference between statistical and practical significance. Classical estimation theory, bias and efficiency. Likelihood function, likelihood based methodology, maximum likelihood estimation and inference based on likelihood ration, Wald and score test procedures. Bayesian approach to statistical inference vs classical frequentist approach. Nonparametric procedures, exact inference and resampling based methodology.

Offerings in 2022

Teaching periodCampusMode
First semesterAlfred HospitalDe
Second semesterAlfred HospitalDe

Assessment

  • 2 x Written assignments (35% each)
    70%
  • Practical exercises
    30%

Learning outcomes

When you finish this unit, you should be able to:

  1. 1

    Have a deeper understanding of fundamental concepts in statistical inference and their practical interpretation and importance in biostatistical contexts.

  2. 2

    Understand the theoretical basis for frequentists and Bayesian approaches to statistical inference.

  3. 3

    Be able to develop and apply parametric methods of inference, with particular reference to problems of relevance in biostatistical contexts.

  4. 4

    Have the theoretical basis to understand the justification for more complex statistical procedures introduced in subsequent units.

  5. 5

    Have an understanding of basic alternatives to standard likelihood-based methods, and be able to identify situations in which these methods are useful.

Learning resources

Required resources

See Moodle for details about required resources.

Contacts

Chief Examiners
Professor Andrew Forbes

Common questions

What are the prerequisites for EPM5003?

EPM5003 has no prerequisites, but enrolment rules apply.

What can I take after EPM5003?

EPM5003 is a prerequisite or corequisite for 9 units, including EPM5006, EPM5008, EPM5009, EPM5010, EPM5011 and EPM5012.

When is EPM5003 offered?

In 2022, EPM5003 runs in Semester 1 and Semester 2 at Alfred Hospital.

Does EPM5003 have an exam?

No. EPM5003 has 2 assessment tasks and no exam.

More details

Credit points
6
Level
5
Study level
Postgraduate
Faculty
Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences
Organisational unit
Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine
Type
Coursework
EFTSL
0.125
Student contribution
SCA Band 2
Study abroad
Not available