QME alum puts learnings from program to work, every day

Ethan Brown, PhD, alumni of the Department of Educational Psychology’s quantitative methods in education (QME) program, realized that statistics was not being taught in an understandable and applicable manner while working at a consulting firm in the energy industry. 

In the midst of this discovery, he stumbled upon the research of Professors Joan Garfield, Bob delMas, and Andy Zieffler, and was immediately drawn to the statistics education area of emphasis within the QME program.  

As Brown began his educational journey in QME, he was surprised by the usefulness and applicability of the skills he was learning. 

“I had no idea that so many people, from so many places and fields, needed the skills of measurement, study & survey design, and data analysis that I was learning — so much so that I had more opportunities than I knew what to do with.”

Brown now works at the Research Methodology Consulting Center in the College of Education and Human Development.

“I use the skills I learned in QME every day!” he says. “At my job, I help researchers design and analyze studies, drawing on all the methodological rigor and expertise I gained in the program.”

Brown wants prospective students to know that not only is the QME program incredible academically, but is also a very supportive community. He advises students to “make the most of this uniquely supportive and fertile environment — you don’t find this everywhere.”