M.S. applicants do not need to have an undergraduate statistics major but should have at least 12 quarter courses (or eight semester courses) in substantial upper division quantitative work, preferably in mathematics and statistics. Applicants must have a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.2 in these upper division courses. Applicants must take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test and a Subject Test and must submit at least three letters of recommendation from those who can attest to their quantitative skills.
Eleven courses
are required for the M.S. degree, of which at least eight must be graduate courses,
while the remaining three may be approved upper division courses. With consent
of the graduate vice chair, students may take up to five of the required 11
courses in other Departments, provided that these courses are in professional
or scientific fields closely related to research in statistics. All courses
must be passed with the grade of B or better.
Students are strongly encouraged to take Statistics 200ab and 210ab. These courses
contain core materials for the qualifying exam.
Masters students who come in with minimal training should take course 100abc
and not 110ab. Statistics 100abc, 110ab, and 120ab cannot be taken for graduate
credit, i.e. they cannot be among the approved upper division courses.If students
do take these courses, it is for their review, but will not carry graduate credit.
Students may enroll in Statistics 596 any number of times and may apply up to two 596 courses
toward the 11-course requirement for the M.S., provided a B- or better is received
in these courses (not the grade of S).
We accept M.S. program applications year round. However, due to the time it takes to process M.S. applications, we anticipate receiving applications on strict deadlines before the start of the quarter that you are applying for. For Winter, the deadline is June 1st and for Spring, the deadline is September 1st (both for the year before the start of the program).
Students must find a thesis adviser, who approves the topic and form of the thesis. The final thesis must be approved by the student's thesis committee, which consists of the adviser and at least two other faculty members, and is formally appointed by the Graduate Division.
Students are expected to complete the requirements for the M.S. degree within six quarters of full-time study.
The vice chair for graduate studies is the chief graduate
adviser and heads a committee of faculty advisers whose field of expertise span
most of the major areas of statistics. Each student is required to meet with
a faculty adviser who will help them plan a reasonable course of study.
The faculty adviser becomes the student's
academic advisor.
Academic advisers are responsible for monitoring students' progress toward their degree objective
and approves student study lists each quarter. Continuing students are normally
asked to meet with the vice chair or their academic adviser at least once each
quarter and a record of this interview is placed in the student files. There
are ample opportunities to meet with an adviser of the student's choice throughout
the academic year.
A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.
A Statistics
M.S. student who does not complete all the requirements for the M.S. within
seven quarters of full-time study is subject to a recommendation for termination.
The graduate vice chair decides in each case whether termination is warranted.
A student may appeal a recommendation for termination to the Graduate Studies
Committee, which makes the final decision on this matter.
If you have
further questions on the Ph.D. Major, feel free to contact the Student Affairs
Officer, Dean M. Dacumos, at (310) 206-3742.