Kerrie Mengersen

Education and career

Mengersen earned BA (Hons I) and PhD degrees in mathematics, majoring in Statistics and Computing, from the University of New England (Armidale, New South Wales, Australia) in 1985 and 1989, respectively. She is the Director of the Bayesian Research and Applications Group (BRAG) within QUT's School of Mathematical Sciences, a member of the university's Centre for Data Science, and was Deputy Director of the former Australian Research Council (ARC) Centre of Excellence for Mathematical and Statistical Frontiers (ACEMS) of Big Data, Big Models, New Insights.

She has co-authored three books and edited two, and has written 27 book chapters and approximately 250 journal articles. Her research covers a broad spectrum of statistical practice, from theory to its applications. She is primarily known for her work in Bayesian statistics and meta-analysis, and has worked in applications of statistics in medicine and environmental science. In 2016, she was the first woman to be awarded the Statistical Society of Australia's Pitman Medal, which recognises outstanding achievement in the statistics discipline. She talks about new challenges for statisticians in a YouTube video. She has contributed to Australian biosecurity efforts. In October 2015, her research in building virtual habitats was highlighted on the ABC.

Mengersen was the National President of the Statistical Society of Australia (SSAI) in 2013, and was the International President of the International Society for Bayesian Analysis (ISBA) in 2016. As of 2022, she is a member of the Academy Council of the Queensland Academy of Arts and Sciences.