So I have noticed there are a bunch of statisticians in this community. So I am about to graduate from college with a bs in economics, and am pretty much clueless what to do after. It seems like one of the major career paths I can go into is statistical research. Anyone have some good career advice for this soon to be college grad. hah I know this is a funny place to ask but worth a try =).

best paying jobs are investment banking, think tanks, or trading. in this economy, really depends on what college you graduated from and with what gpa to figure out which career path is the most financially sound.

If you're unsure but still want a job to hold you over your best bet might just be Insurance. It's a huge industry and there are jobs all over the US (assuming you're looking for within the US). This can keep you afloat until you really find what you want but like Pink said, if you like statistics and want it to be a practical job where you actually work with people, finance would be a good place.

I'd apply for analyst programs at investment bank or big consulting firms -- assuming you have the grades/school to get in.

Too soon for B School, so head for finance. I'd skip trading and have no idea how you get hired at a think tank if you aren't an exceptional academic.

I've noticed a fair number of COmputer Science college students on WL as well -- are they applying mostly to the giant tech companies in silicon valley? What's that market like?

I'm in college as an Mechanical Engineer(ME), which means I can go to pretty much any city and find a good job, I'm thinking about possibly Texas/Florida.......

But the computer science (CS) industry is changing a lot lately. It's a lot less based in silicon valley. Google just started moving everything to their new building in NY. so CS majors are beginning to be able to find jobs pretty much anywhere they want.

(I always confuse the English terms of under-grad, grad & whatever, in Europe we have bachelor (first 3 years of university, master (specialisation, 2 years after) and then possibly a PhD (paid research), so I'm going to use these terms, also my direct experience is Europe (Belgium) based although I have quite some contact with Americans and foreigners from other countries (China & Congo for example) in similar positions and with and people who have worked in different countries).

Let me give you my own background as an example first:
I had a science background when I left high school, studied math in my bachelor, with a slight specialisation in economical and actuarial math, then statistics in my master. Meanwhile, I've done a lot of training in actuarial math and a little in economics, mostly by teaching a friend who did this.
I worked on a PhD for 1 years, then stopped because I had lost all interest in it and I'm now working as a teacher/teacher assistant/scientific collaborator at university, all classes in statistics. Future, most likely I'll start another, more interesting PhD in half a year or so if I get the chance.
So, summarized, I have a background mainly in statistics with a broad knowledge of math and econometrics.

For career paths, I have applied for several jobs between my 1st year as PhD and my current position as teaching assistant. Jobs for statisticians, economical mathematicians, applied mathematicians, actuarial scientists, ... are everywhere.
In the end, shortly after I had an agreement for my current position, I got offered another position and even two months later companies who saw my profile at the time or whom I applied for at the time still called me (back) and kept asking if I was interested even after I told them I had a new job already.

When I talked to people with a similar background as mine, I get these same conclusions. The demand in people with a background in both mathematics/statistics and economics is huge and the pool of talent is ridiculously small. Although it is a very competitive environment and companies often want people with unrealistic background experience, the job opportunities are countless in most civilised regions.

Companies in many sectors, banks, federal or state organisations and especially large multinationals have a constant need for people who know how to chew on numbers and how to deal with them both in very practical applied ways and in very abstract models that users may never see.

What I often noticed too, is that there is also a smaller group of companies, for example banks, who often don't care what degree exactly you have and who don't value experience. If you can prove them you are good in a variety of economics, math and science, they will make sure they'll get you a job and give you the training you need on the fly. These jobs pay much less initially, but the experience can be a bonus in later parts of your career.

So, if you're planning on going for a math/statistics degree and you already have a decent background in economics and you're somewhat good in it, I can guarantee you that you'll never have to struggle to get a job.

greetings from spain
i have study computers science, work as analyst-programmer. this give me a logic and strategic plus ;-)
i have been worked in different sectors: construction, legacy, goberment, insurances, big stores, marketing, etc