Degree Requirements

There are three options under the B.S. in Statistics degree program: the General Major, the Major with Emphasis in Actuarial Mathematics and Statistics, and the Intensive Major. The Major with Emphasis in Actuarial Mathematics and Statistics is designed for students planning a career as an actuary. The Intensive Major is designed for students planning on graduate study in statistics.

Each of these options requires 128 approved credit hours including the General Education requirements as listed in the College of Arts and Sciences section of the Undergraduate Bulletin. The following pre-major courses may fulfill some of the General Education requirements and must be passed with a C or higher (in at most two attempts) for a B.S. degree in Statistics: MATH 141, MATH 142, CSCE 145 or 206, ENGL 462 or 463.

A complete listing of the additional degree requirements for each option can be found in the Statistics section of the Undergraduate Bulletin.

Note that all required mathematics, computer science, and statistics courses must be passed with at least a grade of C in the first two attempts.

You may find the Curriculum Planner for the General Major and the Curriculum Planner for the Major with Emphasis in Actuarial Mathematics and Statistics useful when preparing for advisement.

Employment After Graduation

Statisticians are in great demand and work in various settings. Salaries and working conditions are excellent. Statisticians evaluate the safety and efficacy of new drugs for pharmaceutical companies. Insurance companies use statisticians to estimate the risks of life, health care, and casualty events. Conducting the Federal census and estimating the inflation rate are two of many tasks done by government statisticians. Industrial statisticians design experiments to improve manufacturing processes and to maintain quality. Market research firms use statisticians to improve the efficiency of their mass mailing campaigns. Statisticians develop credit scoring algorithms for financial service companies. Educational testing companies use statisticians to measure the validity of standardized test questions. And these are only some of the places statisticians work.

The University's Career Center provides job search assistance. You should visit the Career Center early in your next to last semester. The Department provides links to various job listings. You will learn about other job search information in STAT 590 Statistics Capstone.

Advisement

Upon becoming a statistics major, you will initially be advised by the Undergraduate Director, Prof. Brian Habing. After this initial advisement, you will be assigned a faculty advisor. You will need to meet with your advisor during the advisement period in the Fall and Spring Semesters to discuss your current courses and to plan for future semesters. You will not be allowed to register for courses until you have been advised. Feel free to meet with your advisor at other times if you have questions or are having problems.

If you do not know who your advisor is, send an e-mail to the Undergraduate Director.

Senior Check

Early in your next to last semester, you should meet with your advisor to complete a major program card. This card lists the courses you have taken or will take to complete your major and cognate (or minor) requirements. After completing the major program card, call the College of Arts and Sciences Undergraduate Office (777-2505) to schedule a Senior Check Appointment. You will need to take the major program card to your Senior Check Appointment. The Senior Check verifies the remaining course requirements needed for graduation.

Statistics Faculty

The Department's 15 faculty members are well-known for teaching and research excellence. They have won University, state, and national teaching awards and six are Fellows of the American Statistical Association. We also have 7 adjunct faculty members whose primary appointment is in another department or institution. Click here to learn more about the faculty.

Double Majors and Minors

It is possible to major in statistics and and to have a second major or a minor in many other fields at USC. A second major or a minor replaces the cognate requirement for the B.S. in Statistics degree. Students considering a second major or a minor should make their advisor aware of this fact as soon as possible.

For double majors, all degree requirements for each major must be satisfied. (Only one of STAT 509 or STAT 515 may be used for major or minor credit.) There is a substantial overlap between Statistics general (pre-major) requirements and requirements for Computer Science or Mathematics majors, and so a double major may be most attractive in these areas.

A minor consists of 18 hours of advanced courses specified by the department or college offering the minor.

Consult the Undergraduate Bulletin or a faculty advisor for more details on minors and double majors.

Accelerated B.S./M.S. Program

An outstanding Statistics major can obtain both a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Statistics and a Master of Science (M.S.) in Statistics in a period of five years. During or after the semester in which 90 credit hours are completed toward the B.S. degree in Statistics, a student may apply for the Department of Statistics Accelerated B.S./M.S. Education Plan. The application will require the approval of the Student's Undergraduate Advisor, the Graduate Director in Statistics, and the Dean of the College of Science and Mathematics. Provisional admission to and continuation in the Department of Statistics Accelerated B.S./M.S. Education Plan will require at least a 3.4 overall GPA and at least a 3.4 GPA in Statistics and Mathematics courses. It is expected that students opting for the plan will complete their B.S. requirements by the end of their eighth semester. Students admitted provisionally to the plan must take the general Graduate Record Examination (GRE) before the end of their seventh semester. Continuation in the plan after the eighth semester requires that the student be admitted into the graduate program in Statistics as would any other graduate applicant.

Students in the Department of Statistics Accelerated B.S./M.S. Education Plan may count up to nine (9) credit hours from the following list toward both their undergraduate and graduate degree requirements: STAT 510, 517, 518, 519, 520, 525, 590, and all 700-or-higher level courses. (Graduate courses to be applied to the undergraduate major must be approved as per relevant administrative regulations.) Students admitted to the Department of Statistics Accelerated B.S./M.S. Education Plan will normally be eligible to apply for Instructional or Research Assistantship financial support after their eighth semester (fourth year), given completion of the requirements for the B.S. degree and satisfactory progress towards the M.S. degree.

Interested students should discuss the accelerated program with their advisor as soon as possible.

Your E-Mail Address

The Undergraduate Director frequently distributes important information to statistics majors via e-mail. Please e-mail us your current e-mail address.

Student Organizations

Two student organizations, the Statistics Club and the S.C. Beta Chapter of Mu Sigma Rho, the national statistics honor society, provide social and professional interaction among students, faculty, and visiting statistics professionals.

Departmental Awards

The Department of Statistics honors statistics majors each year at the University's Awards Day. The Mu Sigma Rho Award recognizes a statistics major for outstanding academic achievement. The Stephen D. Durham Award recognizes outstanding academic performance by a senior statistics major. The College of Arts and Sciences traditionally awards a $500 scholarship to a rising senior statistics major. The Department's Undergraduate Advisory Committee selects the winners of these awards with input from the Department's faculty.

Undergraduate Bulletin

The Undergraduate Bulletin lists degree requirements, course descriptions, academic regulations, and other important information.

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