Skip to main content
Cornell university
Cornell Statistics and Data Science Cornell Statistics and Data Science
  • About Us

    About Us
    Cornell's Department of Statistics and Data Science offers four programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Undergraduates can earn a BA in statistical science, social...

    Welcome to the Department of Statistics and Data Science
    History
    Facilities
    Statistics Graduate Society
    Recently Published Papers
  • Academics

    Academics

    Undergraduate
    PhD
    MPS
    PhD Minor in Data Science
    Courses & Course Enrollment
  • People

    People

    Faculty
    Field Faculty
    PhDs
    Emeritus Faculty
    Academic Staff
    Staff
    Research Areas of Expertise
    Statistical Consultants
  • News and Events

    News and Events

    Events
    News
  • Resources

    Resources

    Professional Societies and Meetings
    Affiliated Groups
    Career Services
    Cornell Statistical Consulting Unit
  • Alumni

    Alumni
    Cornell's Statistics and Data Science degrees prepare students for a wide variety of careers, from academia to industry.  See the After Graduation page for a general overview of...

    Alumni Profiles

Search form

You are here

  1. Home 
  2. Alumni 
  3. Alumni Profiles

Lulu Yan '08

Lulu Yan

Lulu Yan graduated from Cornell University in 2008 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biometry and Statistics. After spending a decade as a data scientist in several industries, Yan is currently developing a healthcare startup in Silicon Valley. "Cherish your time at Cornell and strive for a career with fulfillment and passion," she offered to current students, "no matter what you do or where you work in the future."    

What do you remember most about your time as a student in Ithaca? The moments before certain exams and project deadlines; the friendships in and outside of the classroom; my performances for PREPARE program and for class at Schwartz Center; starry summer nights after my part-time job in a library; and climbing up the hill in the snow.

Where do you work now, and what do you do? I am currently working on my healthcare startup in San Francisco. During the decade prior to June 2018, I had been working in the space of statistics and data science across a few industries - multiple sectors in healthcare, internet (shortly), insurance, and finance.

How did your Cornell education prepare you in your current role? Technical courses for the academic major provided basic skills and a solid foundation for continuous learning during my work as a statistician/quant/data scientist, regardless of industry. The liberal arts education prepared me to follow my heart and take calculated risks. Common Cornell experiences have brought me closer to alumni in both organizations and geographical locations.

What advice would you give to current statistics students about working in the industry or academia? I believe that current statistics students should not worry about finding a good job in demand: Statistics is such a widely applicable subject and the academic rigor of Cornell Stats prepares you well. Instead, cherish your time at Cornell and strive for a career with fulfillment and passion, no matter what you do or where you work in the future.

Anything else you’d like to add about your education and/or your Cornell experience? I am very grateful to the people who made an impact during my Cornell career and afterwards. If any of you can see this, I want to thank you again.

Image Gallery

Lulu Yan

In This Section

  • Weihua Li MPS ’11
  • Bhairav Mehta MPS ’04
  • Jin Wook Kim, MPS '08
  • Irina Gaynanova (Stats PhD '15)
  • Stephen Salerno (Biometry and Statistics, '16)
  • Mathematician Robert Wolpert (’72) named 2019 Cornell Distinguished Alumni
  • Melissa Sharma '13
  • Lauren Altman '03
  • Lulu Yan '08
  • Ed George, Math '72, 2018 Cornell Distinguished Alumni
  • Sharon Lawner Weinberg AB ’68, PhD ’71
  • Charles McCulloch, PhD '80, 2017 Distinguished Alumni
  • Eric Callahan DSS MPS Alumni
  • Bruce Turnbull, PhD '71, 2016 Distinguished Alumni
  • Kyley Nemeckay DSS MPS Alumni
  • William Strawderman Cornell '65, 2015 Distinguished Alumni
  • Aditya Barua DSS MPS Alumni
  • Minghan Liang, MPS ’22
  • Jimi He, MPS ‘22
  • Nirmal Srinivasan, MPS ‘23
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Careers
© Cornell University Department of Statistics and Data Science

1198 Comstock Hall, 129 Garden Ave., Ithaca, NY 14853

Social Menu

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
Cornell Bowers CIS College of Computing and Information Science Cornell CALS ILR School

If you have a disability and are having trouble accessing information on this website or need materials in an alternate format, contact web-accessibility@cornell.edu for assistance.