2023-24 Edition

Data Science, B.S.

The Data Science Major prepares students for a career in data analysis, combining foundational statistical concepts with computational principles from computer science. In the first two years of the program students will take core courses in both the Statistics and Computer Science Departments, providing a strong foundation in the principles of each field. In the 3rd and 4th years of the program, students will take more specialized courses, on topics such as design of algorithms, machine learning, information visualization, and Bayesian statistics. A major component of this degree is the final year capstone project course, a 2-quarter course that teaches students how to apply statistical and computational principles to solve large-scale real-world data analysis problems.

Freshman Applicants: See the Undergraduate Admissions section.

Transfer Applicants: See the Undergraduate Admissions section.

Bren School of ICS majors (including shared majors, BIM and CSE) pursuing minors within the Bren School of ICS may not count more than five courses toward both the major and minor. Some ICS majors and minors outside of the School are not permitted due to significant overlap. Visit the ICS Student Affairs Office website for Majors and Minors restrictions. All students should check the Double Major Restrictions Chart and view our information page on double majoring to see what degree programs are eligible for double majoring.

All students must meet the University Requirements.
Data Science Major Requirements
Lower-division:
A. Select one of the following series:
Introduction to Programming
and Programming with Software Libraries
and Intermediate Programming
or
Python Programming and Libraries (Accelerated)
and Intermediate Programming
B. Complete:
I&C SCI 45C Programming in C/C++ as a Second Language
I&C SCI 46 Data Structure Implementation and Analysis
I&C SCI 51 Introductory Computer Organization
IN4MATX 43 Introduction to Software Engineering
C. Complete:
MATH 2A Single-Variable Calculus
MATH 2B Single-Variable Calculus
MATH 2D Multivariable Calculus
MATH 3A Introduction to Linear Algebra
or I&C SCI 6N Computational Linear Algebra
I&C SCI 6B Boolean Logic and Discrete Structures
I&C SCI 6D Discrete Mathematics for Computer Science
STATS 5 Seminar in Data Science
STATS 7 Basic Statistics
STATS 68 Statistical Computing and Exploratory Data Analysis
Upper-division:
A. Data Science core requirements:
STATS 110 Statistical Methods for Data Analysis I
STATS 111 Statistical Methods for Data Analysis II
STATS 112 Statistical Methods for Data Analysis III
STATS 115 Introduction to Bayesian Data Analysis
STATS 120A Introduction to Probability and Statistics I
STATS 120B Introduction to Probability and Statistics II
STATS 120C Introduction to Probability and Statistics III
I&C SCI 139W Critical Writing on Information Technology
COMPSCI 122A Introduction to Data Management
COMPSCI 161 Design and Analysis of Algorithms
COMPSCI 178 Machine Learning and Data-Mining
IN4MATX 143 Information Visualization
B. Three elective courses from the list below:
Probability II
Stochastic Processes
Multivariate Statistical Methods
Principles in System Design
Digital Image Processing
Computer Simulation
Information Retrieval
Project in Databases and Web Applications
Principles of Data Management
Next Generation Search Systems
Parallel and Distributed Computing
Computer and Network Security
Graph Algorithms
Project In Algorithms And Data Structures
Introduction to Optimization
Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
Neural Networks and Deep Learning
Human Computer Interaction
Information Retrieval
Social Analysis of Computing
C. Data Science capstone team-based project courses: STATS 170A and STATS 170B
Freshman
Fall Winter Spring
I&C SCI 31I&C SCI 32I&C SCI 33
MATH 2AMATH 2BMATH 2D
WRITING 40STATS 5STATS 7
 WRITING 50WRITING 60
Sophomore
Fall Winter Spring
I&C SCI 45CI&C SCI 46I&C SCI 51
I&C SCI 6BI&C SCI 6DSTATS 68
STATS 120AMATH 3ASTATS 120C
General Education IIISTATS 120BGeneral Education VI
Junior
Fall Winter Spring
COMPSCI 122A, 161, or 178COMPSCI 122A, 161, or 178COMPSCI 122A, 161, or 178
IN4MATX 43I&C SCI 139WIN4MATX 143
STATS 110STATS 111STATS 112
General Education IV/VIIIGeneral Education III/VII 
Senior
Fall Winter Spring
STATS 115STATS 170ASTATS 170B
Data Science Major ElectiveData Science Major ElectiveData Science Major Elective
General Education IIIGeneral Education IVGeneral Education IV

A wide variety of careers and graduate programs are open to graduates of the Data Science major. Demand for graduates with skills in both statistics and computer science currently outpaces supply - thus, students with these skills typically find employment quickly, across a wide variety of sectors, including internet  companies, finance, engineering, business, medicine, and more. Data Science graduates are well-qualified for job titles such as “data scientist,” “data analyst,” or “statistician,” both in the public and private sectors. Graduate school in area such as Computer Science or Statistics is also a possible career path.