Mathematical Statistics VS Computational Statistics/Machine Learning for an academic careeer [C] [R}

[u/GayTwink-69]

Is it still worth pursuing an academic career in mathematical statistics these days?
Or is it shooting yourself in the foot with all the focus on computational statistics and machine learning?

I.e., will you have a harder time landing postdocs/tenure track positions and getting grants as a more mathematical statistician vs a computational statistician/machine learning scientist?

I love mathematical statistics and proving everything rigorously using mathematics, but I also don't want to be shooting myself in the foot by choosing a dead/dying path.

[u/Silver-Iron8016]

I think if you love the deeper analytical theory, it may be hard for you to adapt and do more applied work, though you could possibly mix the two together, 70/30 theory/applied. But I'd be careful in thinking you can simply "switch" and do applied if your heart is in theory.