2015-2016 Undergraduate & Graduate Catalog
Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science in Statistics
- Requirements for a Major in Statistics
- 2. Statistics Requirements Credits: 29
- 3. Cognate Requirements Credits: 15
- Suggested Order of Coursework for a Major in Statistics
- Suggested Order of Coursework 1
- Suggested Order of Coursework 2
Requirements for a Major in Statistics
Students must complete the following requirements:
1. University Degree Requirements
As identified in the General Academic Regulations section of the Grand Valley State University Undergraduate and Graduate Catalog.
2. Statistics Requirements Credits: 29
All majors must complete the following statistics core courses Credits: 23
- STA 215 - Introductory Applied Statistics Credits: 3 OR STA 312 - Probability and Statistics (3 credits)
- STA 216 - Intermediate Applied Statistics Credits: 3
- STA 311 - Introduction to Survey Sampling Credits: 3
- STA 315 - Design of Experiments Credits: 3
- STA 319 - Statistics Project Credits: 3
- STA 412 - Mathematical Statistics I Credits: 4
- STA 415 - Mathematical Statistics II (Capstone) Credits: 4
All majors must complete two of the following statistics elective courses Credits: 6
- STA 301 - Questionnaire Design and Execution Credits: 3
- STA 310 - Introduction to Biostatistics Credits: 3
- STA 314 - Statistical Quality Methods Credits: 3
- STA 317 - Nonparametric Statistical Analysis Credits: 3
- STA 318 - Statistical Computing Credits: 3
- STA 321 - Applied Regression Analysis Credits: 3
- STA 426 - Multivariate Data Analysis Credits: 3
- STA 421 - Bayesian Data Analysis Credits: 3
3. Cognate Requirements Credits: 15
Completion of MTH 201, MTH 202, MTH 227, and one of CIS 160, CIS 162 or CIS 261 satisfies the B.S. degree cognate for statistics majors. Completion of these courses plus the foreign language requirement for a B.A. satisfies the B.A. degree cognate for statistics majors. The following cognates are required of all students majoring in statistics:
- MTH 201 - Calculus I Credits: 4
- MTH 202 - Calculus II Credits: 4
- MTH 227 - Linear Algebra I Credits: 3
- AND one of the following:
- CIS 160 - Programming with Visual Basic Credits: 3
- CIS 162 - Computer Science I Credits: 4
- CIS 261 - Structured Programming in C Credits: 3
4. Application Cognates (a minimum of 6 credits)
Each major in statistics must select an area of application consisting of at least six credits from outside statistics. Students must meet with their statistics advisor to develop specific plans for their application cognates. Students are strongly encouraged to meet with their advisor as soon as their major in statistics is declared.
Suggested Order of Coursework for a Major in Statistics
The following two sample statistics schedules assume the student is in contact with an advisor for the appropriate general education requirements and has a strong mathematical background. Students who do not begin their mathematical sequence with MTH 201 will need to make appropriate changes. Suggested order of coursework 1 assumes students take MTH 201 in the fall of their first year; suggested order of coursework 2 assumes students take MTH 201 in the fall of their second year.
Students majoring in statistics who plan to do graduate work are strongly encouraged to take MTH 203, Calculus and Analytic Geometry III, in the fall of their second year and MTH 227, Linear Algebra I, in the winter of their second year.
Suggested Order of Coursework 1
First Year
Second Year
Third Year
Fourth Year
Suggested Order of Coursework 2
First Year
Second Year
- CIS 162 - Computer Science I (4 credits)
- MTH 201 - Calculus I (4 credits)
- STA 216 - Intermediate Applied Statistics (3 credits)