Study Design

Biostatistics, Epidemiology & Research Design (BERD)

Dr. Howard Cabral and Dr. Jungwun Lee, faculty in the Department of Biostatistics, lead the consulting sessions. Please SUBMIT a request for an individual biostatistics consulting session here.
Virtual Drop-In sessions are now available on Tuesdays from 11am – 12pm from April 1st to June 24th, 2025.  Please signup for a 30 minute session via the Sign-up Genius form.  Once you have signed-up for a slot, you will be sent a Outlook Meeting request with Zoom Link shortly after.

The CTSI’s Biostatistics, Epidemiology & Research Design (BERD) program provides researchers with comprehensive support in designing and carrying out research at the design, implementation and analysis stages. As biostatistics assistance ranks among the top requests for CTSA services, BERD has generated a portfolio of solutions for the most common needs to ensure participation in the earliest stages of study development.

The BERD program aims to:

Collaborate and consult with research teams to help them design and carry out high-quality research. We offer free biostatistics and data management drop-in sessions on both the Medical and Charles River Campuses. For those investigators who cannot attend a drop-in, we can schedule a separate meeting through our request for consultations. If services requested go beyond what can be provided through CTSI consulting, we offer fee-for-services, as well as collaboration on grants and funded projects.

Educate and train research teams in proper approaches to design studies, collect and manage data, perform analyses and present results. We provide education, collaboration, and consultation on design and analysis through our regularly scheduled BERD seminars.

Identify novel methods for design, implementation, and analysis through collaboration with methods and experts. We invite you to attend one of our drop-in sessions, schedule a meeting, or attend a seminar to learn more about the novel methods provided and facilitated by our program.

BERD consulting services and collaboration are available to all BU investigators.

BERD faculty and staff also collaborate closely with the Clinical Research Informatics and Technology Consultation (CRITC) service, assisting with the use of information technology and informatics to facilitate clinical studies.

BERD Highlights

    • Monthly seminars on a variety of topics
    • Weekly Study Design and Statistical Analysis Studios: drop-in sessions where investigators can receive assistance with research study design, design of data collection systems and instruments, data entry and validation, data management and quality assurance, statistical analysis and data interpretation, and professional and scientific report-writing.
    • Development of a Certificate Program in Clinical and Translational Statistics in conjunction with the Department of Biostatistics for those not seeking an advanced degree.
    • Creation of the BERD software toolkit which includes REDCap and other research data management tools and resources.
    • Collaboration through the New England Research Institute (NERI) in a large number of diverse multicenter trials and observational studies (e.g., the interplay of genetics and environment on the development of disease traits).
    • Addition of new areas of statistical design and analysis such as adaptive trial design and network-based analyses of cell-line data (e.g., stem cell studies using iPSC cell lines)
    • Cross-departmental collaboration, e.g., BERD staff work closely with colleagues from the CTSI Informatics Program to develop statistical models for use with the “HOME cell” and the Regulatory Knowledge and Support Program to pre-review IRB proposals before they undergo full board review.

BERD faculty are nationally and internationally recognized leaders in the areas of statistical genetics, longitudinal data analysis, and functional genomics. Find more information on faculty and staff here.