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The COPSS Award in everyday usage means the COPSS Presidents’ Award, an annual early-career honor in statistical science presented by the Committee of Presidents of Statistical Societies (COPSS) at the Joint Statistical Meetings (JSM). It is a different prize from the International Prize in Statistics, which is administered by a separate foundation and recognizes a major, lasting contribution to the field.
What the COPSS Presidents’ Award is
COPSS is a committee of the presidents of several North American statistical societies. Its Presidents’ Award honors a younger statistician for outstanding contributions to the profession of statistics, and the presentation takes place at the COPSS Awards session at JSM. For research administrators and department chairs, it is a recognition prize for an individual, not a project grant, so there is no budget, indirect-cost or sub-award structure to manage.
Eligibility
A candidate qualifies by meeting either of two conditions:
- Age route: the candidate is under 41 during the calendar year of the award.
- Degree route: the candidate is under 46 during the award year and holds a statistically related terminal degree earned no more than 12 years earlier.
Before 2005 only the age-41 rule applied; the second route was added later, so nominators should check whether a candidate who looks too old for the age route fits the degree route. Always confirm the current rules in the official COPSS call for nominations for the year in question.
Nominations and timeline
COPSS publishes a call for nominations for each award year, and member societies circulate it. Required materials, page limits and the deadline are set in that year’s call and can change, so this guide does not restate them; use the current call. Institutions building a nomination can strengthen the case by documenting the nominee’s methodological work, for example novel approaches to a statistical test, and the scientific problems it served, such as sample size justification for a grant or protocol. A related reference is how to choose a statistical test.
COPSS Presidents’ Award versus the International Prize in Statistics
| Feature | COPSS Presidents’ Award | International Prize in Statistics |
|---|---|---|
| Awarding body | Committee of Presidents of Statistical Societies | The International Prize in Statistics Foundation |
| Career stage | Early career (age and degree-window rules above) | Recognizes a major contribution to the field |
| Most recent laureate on the prize site | See the COPSS awards pages | Grace Wahba (2025), for work on smoothing splines and early nonparametric regression modeling |
For how statistics relates to its neighbouring field, see data science versus statistics.
FAQ
What does the COPSS Presidents’ Award recognize?
Outstanding contributions to the profession of statistics by an early-career statistician, presented at the Joint Statistical Meetings.
Is the COPSS Award the same as the International Prize in Statistics?
No. They are separate prizes with different awarding bodies. The International Prize in Statistics is awarded by its own Foundation; the Presidents’ Award is presented by COPSS.
Who is eligible?
Candidates under 41 in the award year, or under 46 with a statistically related terminal degree earned no more than 12 years earlier.
Sources
- International Prize in Statistics Foundation, https://www.statprize.org/ (checked 2026-11-07).
- Wikipedia, COPSS Presidents’ Award (eligibility rules and history), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COPSS_Presidents%27_Award (checked 2026-11-07).
- Institute of Mathematical Statistics, COPSS award nomination notices, https://imstat.org/2021/09/30/2022-copss-awards-nominations/ (checked 2026-11-07).
