Major in Statistics

Statistics is the science of modeling, summarizing, and analyzing data. Statisticians help people produce trustworthy data, analyze the data, and present the results in a useful manner. Statisticians work with people from other professional backgrounds to solve practical problems. They provide crucial guidance in determining what information is reliable and which predictions can be trusted. An exciting aspect of the field is the diversity of areas where statistical methods are used; this is one reason for continuing strong demand for well-trained statisticians. With the popularity of big data and the focus on quantitative analysis in many fields, there will continue to be a high demand for graduates with a statistics major or minor. Students who succeed in the field of statistics typically have strong quantitative skills, analytical minds, and like to help other people solve problems.

Learning Objectives

Students successfully completing this program will be able to:

1. Conceptualize analytical questions in terms of a model;
2. Apply their knowledge of the core set of statistical methods;
3. Perform data analysis using statistical software;
4. Interpret and communicate statistical results;
5. Either attend graduate school in statistics or find professional employment in a statistics field upon completion of a statistics major.

Potential Occupations

Statisticians find employment in a wide range of industries including medicine (evaluating new medicines and medical treatments), computing, business, market research, natural resources, government, industrial quality control, social science research, and more. Almost every industry has a statistician or a group of statisticians somewhere in the organization. Graduate school is also an option after graduation. Many of our undergraduate majors have continued on to graduate school in statistics, either at CSU or other universities. Almost all statistics majors are able to find work in this field and/or gain entrance to graduate school after successfully completing a statistics degree.

To learn more about a Major in Statistics please see our Advising page, or contact us at stats@stat.colostate.edu.

Effective Fall 2025

A minimum grade of C (2.000) is required in each CS, DSCI, MATH, and STAT course required for the major.

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Select upper-division (300- to 400-level) statistics, data science, mathematics, or computer science (excluding STAT 301, STAT 307, and courses ending in -82 to-99).  Students may also select ECON 435 or ECON 436 to apply to this category.

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Select 400-level Statistics courses (excluding courses ending in -82 to-99).  Students may also select DSCI 445 to apply to this category.

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Select enough elective credits to bring the program total to a minimum of 120 credits, of which at least 42 must be upper-division (300- to 400-level).

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Distinctive Requirements for Degree Program:

To Prepare for First Semester: The Curriculum for the Statistics Major assumes students enter college prepared to take calculus. Entering students who are not prepared to take calculus will need to fulfill pre-calculus requirements in the first semester. A minimum grade of C (2.000) is required in all CS, DSCI, MATH, and STAT courses which are required by the major.