Statistics Minor

The Statistics Department will accept letter grade or credit for all minor courses for 2020-21 academic year.

The undergraduate minor in Statistics is designed to complement major degree programs primarily in the social and natural sciences. Students with an undergraduate Statistics minor should find broadened possibilities for employment. The Statistics minor provides valued preparation for professional degree studies in postgraduate academic programs.

Access the Statistics Minor Form

Course Requirements

Required Statistics Courses

Choose one of the following options:
1. Stats 116: Theory of Probability
  Note: The Statistics department does not consider CS 109 or CME 106 equivalent to STATS 116. Stats minors who have already taken one or both courses prior to declaring may take either STATS 116 or the more advanced STATS 217 (recommended) to fulfill the requirement.
2. Stats 117: Theory of Probability I AND Stats 118: Theory of Probability II
Stats 200: Introduction to Statistical Inference
Note: Stats 200 may not be substituted or waived.

Qualifying Courses

Choose one of the following courses:
1. Math 52: Integral Calculus of Several Variables
  Note that CME 102 is not a suitable course to use in place of MATH 52. If a student has taken CME 102, they will need to take STATS 191 to satisfy the Qualifying Course requirement.
2. Stats 191: Introduction to Applied Statistics

Elective Courses

Choose at least three of the following, for a total of 9 units or more:
1. Stats 202: Data Mining and Analysis
  Stats 203: Introduction to Regression Models and Analysis of Variance
  Stats 205: Introduction to Nonparametric Statistics
  Stats 206: Applied Multivariate Analysis
  Stats 207: Introduction to Time Series Analysis
  Stats 217: Introduction to Stochastic Processes I
  Stats 218: Introduction to Stochastic Processes II
  Stats 240: Statistical Methods in Finance
  Stats 243: Risk Analytics and Management in Finance and Insurance
  Stats 250: Mathematical Finance
  Bio 283: Theoretical Population Genetics
  Econ 160: Game Theory and Economic Applications
  EE 264: Digital Signal Processing
  EE 279: Introduction to Digital Communication

At least one of the three elective courses should be a STATS 200-level course. The remaining two elective courses may also be STATS 200-level courses. Alternatively, one or two elective courses may be approved courses in other departments. Special topics courses and seminars for undergraduates are offered from time to time by the department and these may be counted toward the elective course requirement. STATS 60/160, STATS 195, STATS 199, STATS 298, STATS 299 or any Statistics courses below the 100 level may not be counted toward the minor.

Examples of elective course sequences are:
STATS 202, 203, (204), emphasizing data analysis and applied statistics
STATS 205, 206, (207), emphasizing statistical methodology
STATS 206, ECON 160, (181), emphasizing economic optimization
STATS 206, PSYCH 156, (160), emphasizing psychology modeling and experiments
STATS 207, EE 264, (279), emphasizing signal processing
STATS 217, BIO 283, emphasizing genetic and ecologic modeling
STATS 217, 218, emphasizing probability and its applications
STATS 240, 250, emphasizing mathematical finance

Additional Information:

Any exceptions (including exceptions to the approved list of electives) must be approved by the department. Please submit the Statistics Minor Requirement Petition.
All courses for the minor must be taken for a letter grade, where offered.
Statistics will accept a letter grade or credit for all minor courses from the 2020-21 academic year.
An overall 2.75 grade point average (GPA) is required for courses fulfilling the minor.
Students may not overlap ("double-count") courses when completing multiple major and/or minor requirements. If a student is using a class for their major, they would need to find another suitable course to satisfy the requirements for the minor.
Any changes to the initial course of study should be approved in advance by the department.
Statistics minor inquiries should be addressed to the lbreazel [at] stanford.edu (Student Services Specialist).

Forms:

Not sure if the Statistics minor is right for you?

Take a look at the Data Science minor.
Reach out to our lbreazel [at] stanford.edu (Student Services Specialist).

Interested in a coterm program?

Much like not double counting courses in multiple majors/minors, the courses required for your undergraduate degree do not also count toward your graduate coterm program. If a given course is part of your chosen coterm program and is also required to complete the requirements for a minor, you will need to discuss appropriate higher-level, additional courses with the coterm department to satisfy the requirements of the coterm. Taking the courses for your undergrad minor does not simultaneously satisfy the requirement in your chosen graduate degree program.

Sample Path through the Minor

Frosh Year:

Any math prerequisites, such as Math 21 (if needed) and Math 51

Sophomore Year:

Math 52 (before Stats 116) or Stats 191
Stats 116
OR Stats 117 & Stats 118

Junior Year:

Elective 1
Stats 200

Senior Year:

Elective 2
Elective 3

How to Declare the Minor

1. Use the program sheet to plan your coursework

Make yourself a copy of the statistics minor form. Fill in the grades for classes you’ve already completed, and highlight the classes that you plan to complete in the future.

2. Declare your minor in Axess.

Keep in mind that you must declare a major in Axess before you will be able to declare a minor.

3. Email our Student Services Specialist.

Share your form with our Student Services Team, which includes LaShanette Breazell (lbreazel [at] stanford.edu (lbreazel[at]stanford[dot]edu)) and Amanda Kuhn (aekuhn [at] stanford.edu (aekuhn[at]stanford[dot]edu)). Email LaShanette to let her know you'd like to declare.