The Department of Statistics offers programs of study leading to the degrees of Master of Science (Plan A or B available), Doctor of Philosophy, and Master of Applied Statistics (Online). The M.S. degree is professionally oriented for the student who plans a career in government, business or industry and is preparatory for the Ph.D. The Ph.D. program offers a broad training in both statistical theory and methods while affording options to suit the student’s interests. The statistics Ph.D. is well-suited for academic, business, government and industrial positions. In addition to formal course work and research training, the advanced student has opportunities to gain valuable practical experience by participating in consulting activities under faculty supervision. Master of Applied Statistics is an innovative,online professional graduate degree which is designed to train professional, practice-oriented statisticians who have both data analytic and computing skills.
Both, the M.S. and the Ph.D. program offer a Mathematical Statistics track, as well as a Biostatistics track. The latter tracks are designed for students who envision a future at the interface of Statistics and the Life Sciences.
Course work is available in areas associated with statistics such as biological modeling, probability, inference, experimental design and analysis, computational statistics, nonparametric methods, Bayesian analysis, mixed modeling, multivariate analysis, survival analysis, clinical trials, and many other selected topics of the student’s choice.
The University of Kentucky is represented on the Committee on Statistics of the Southern Regional Education Board.
Admission Requirements
Students with an undergraduate major in any of the mathematical, physical, biological, social or applied sciences are encouraged to apply.
The minimum GRE and GPA admissions requirements for the M.S. and Ph.D. programs in Statistics are the same as for the Graduate School. However, the number of admissions is limited and admissions decisions are made on a competitive basis. All M.S. applicants must have successfully completed a three or four semester sequence in calculus and a course in linear algebra and have good communication skills. In addition, all Ph.D. applicants must have mastered the equivalent of MA 471G. All Master of Applied Statistics applicants must have completed two semesters of calculus and a course in statistical methodology. Students wishing to apply for teaching assistantships and/or fellowships must submit three letters of recommendation. Applicants wishing to be admitted directly to the Ph.D. program must have an M.S. in Statistics and the permission of the Director of Graduate Studies.
Please see the departmental website for up-to-date information and answers to frequently asked questions about the admissions process.
Degree Requirements
The Statistics Department offers the degree of Master of Science with (Plan A) or without (Plan B) a thesis, and in two different tracks: a Mathematical Statistics track and a Biostatistics track.
Shared Core (Required for all students)
Mathematical Statistics Track
Curriculum requirements for the Mathematical Statistics track are the shared core courses above, plus the following courses:
Biostatistics Track
Curriculum requirements in the Biostatistics track are the shared core courses above, plus:
Programs of study for Plan B require a total of at least 35 semester hours. Students will typically fulfill this requirement by taking electives (additional courses besides the shared core and track requirements) in the Fall and Spring of their second year. Programs of study for Plan A (with thesis) require a total of at least 30 semester hours which are satisfied by either of the two course lists above plus 1 or more hours of STA 768 or additional coursework.
The electives can be selected from the menu of courses listed below. Before the end of the second semester, the M.S. candidate must present a proposed plan of study for approval by the Director of Graduate Studies. There are no formal minor requirements.
Comprehensive Exams
All master’s candidates are required to pass a comprehensive departmental written examination on the content of the courses STA 602 , STA 603 , STA 605 , STA 606 , and STA 623 . This examination is normally administered in late May/early June. It is truly comprehensive also in the sense that all parts must be taken together: If a student decides not to take a part of the examination, that part is automatically counted as failed. Students taking the comprehensive exam will receive either a pass at the doctoral level, a pass at the master’s level, or a failure. The examination may be repeated only once. Successful completion of the comprehensive examination at the doctoral level is required for admission into the PhD program.
Electives
The electives may be chosen from any course in the following menu that is NOT used as a track requirement.
Any course on this list NOT required for the chosen track may be used as an elective. Thus, for example, STA 665 would count as an elective for the Mathematical Statistics track, but it is a track requirement for the Biostatistics track. Similarly, STA 624 would be an elective for the Biostatistics track but is a track requirement for the Mathematical Statistics track.
A student who takes both STA 653 and CPH 664 may only receive credit towards the degree for one of these two courses.
All students, master’s and doctoral, will be required to take part in an internship program. This will usually consist of teaching (three or six semester hours) or an equivalent amount of work in a research assistantship working with researchers across campus.
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