Curriculum

M.S. in Applied Statistics

ACADEMIC REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION

Applicants are expected to possess a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution, to have earned a minimum of a “B” average in undergraduate course work, and to have had the following minimal course requirements:

• One year of Calculus equivalent to MATH 131 & MATH 132 or MATH 161 & MATH 162
• One course in Introductory Statistics equivalent to STAT 103, STAT 203 or STAT 335.

Students having only these minimum course requirements may be advised by the Graduate Program Director to seek additional background (such as multivariate calculus and linear algebra) needed to succeed in the graduate courses.
A student deficient in the above minimum course requirement may be admitted conditionally. Such students will be required to take courses to remove these deficiencies, starting in their first semester. Upon successful completion, the student will be admitted to full degree seeking status.

SPECIALIZATIONS

Through this program, students can specialize in either (1) Biostatistics, or (2) General Applied Statistics. The former specialization includes the areas of Statistical Genetics, Bioinformatics, and Classical Biostatistics; the latter includes non-medical applications to Actuarial, Commercial, Environmental, Industrial, and National Defense areas. Students completing the requirements for either of these options will receive the degree of Master of Science (M.S.) in Applied Statistics from Loyola's Graduate School.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

Application for graduate study at Loyola University Chicago should be made online at the Graduate School: apply now. An application is complete upon receipt of the following:

• The application form.
• A personal statement of purpose (which can be uploaded with the application form)
• Three letters of recommendation.
• Official General Test score of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE)
• Official transcripts from all post-secondary institutions attended. An applicant who attended an institution outside of the U.S. must submit an ECE transcript evaluation (general evaluation with grade average).
• International applicants have to demonstrate proficiency in English (TOEFL 550 paper, 79 iBT, or EILTS 6.5).

STATISTICAL CONSULTING COURSE (STAT 401)

An important defining characteristic of the field of Applied Statistics is that it is inherently collaborative in nature. This M.S. program underscores the underlying process of shared learning, joint discovery, dialogue, and communication. Participation is required in a two-credit course in Statistical Consulting (STAT 401), in which consulting techniques are explored and discussed. Students take this course is towards the end of their studies, so that it will serve as a true capstone course, one which brings together all previous classes and helps students to synthesize their knowledge.

In addition, cohorts of students are paired with Loyola researchers to assist them with the analysis of their data so as to aid them in answering their underlying queries. This service will be provided to Loyola researchers on a voluntary basis and pro bono. Researchers are encouraged to present important background and research hypotheses to the class as a whole so that the class can discuss the project in a case study format. Statistics students enrolled in this course will be actively supervised by Statistics faculty members and will report their findings and experiences back to the class upon completion of the project.

As a result, this program interacts intensively with researchers in need of assistance with data analysis: for example, with those in the Departments of Biology, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics (LUMC at Maywood campus), Chemistry, Economics, Psychology, and Sociology; those associated with the Center for Urban Environmental Research and Policy (CUERP), the Center for Urban Research and Learning (CURL) and the Parmly Hearing Institute; as well as with administrators in Loyola Offices or Colleges (such as Research Services, the Graduate School, and the College of Arts and Sciences).

REQUIRED COURSEWORK (29 Total Credits)

Students are required to complete nine three-credit courses, at least seven of these nine course must be at the 400-level. When including the two-credit capstone Statistical Consulting course mentioned above, this is a total of 29 credits for the M.S. degree. Regardless of the specialization, all students are required to take the following six courses (17 credits):

• Elements of Statistical Consulting – STAT 401 (2 credits)
• SAS Programming and Applied Statistics – STAT 403
• Probability and Statistical Theory I – STAT 404
• Probability and Statistical Theory II – STAT 405
• Statistical Design of Analysis of Experiments – STAT 407
• Applied Regression Analysis – STAT 408

The four (12 credits) additional elective courses may be chosen from the following:

• Stochastic Processes – STAT 406
• Categorical Data Analysis – STAT 410
• Applied Survival Analysis – STAT 411
• Applied Multivariate Statistical Analysis – STAT 412
• Advanced Statistical Theory – STAT 426
• Advanced Biostatistics – STAT 436
• Quantitative Methods in Bioinformatics – STAT 437
• Topics in Statistics and Biostatistics – STAT 488
• Other course approved by the Statistics Graduate Program Director (GPD), including as many as two relevant MATH or STAT courses at the 300 level. For example, interested students may take as many as two of the following courses: Combinatorial Mathematics (MATH 423), Algebraic Coding Theory (MATH 428), Financial Mathematics I (MATH 445), or Structural Equation Modeling (PSYC 493). Courses outside of the STAT designation must be approved by the GPD.
• Independent Study in Statistics and Biostatistics – STAT 499

Students specializing in Biostatistics are strongly encouraged to take electives from the following: STAT 410, STAT 411, STAT 436 and STAT 437.

GRADE REQUIREMENTS

Graduate students are expected to maintain an average of not less than “B” (3.0 of 4.0). No more than two grades of “C” or “C+” and no grades lower than “C” may be counted as fulfilling degree requirements. Such grades, however, will be calculated in the GPA. No student will graduate with less than a 3.00 average for all graduate level courses and undergraduate courses taken for graduate credit. In addition, students who earn multiple grades of “C” are subject to review and possible withdrawal from the program.

ASSISTANTSHIPS

Qualified applicants may apply for financial aid, in the form of graduate assistantships. Some tuition stipends may also be available.

PLACEMENT INFORMATION

Recent graduates have continued their Ph.D. studies or taken jobs at firms and universities such as A.C. Nielsen, Allstate, Bank of America, Chicago Tribune, Children’s Research Triangle, CNA, Farmer’s Insurance, HSBC, J.D. Power & Associates, JP Morgan Chase, Motorola, Northwestern University School of Medicine, Quantitative Risk Management, Symphony IRI Group, TransUnion, Trustmark, Washington University (St. Louis), University of Michigan School of Medicine, Valence Health, and Zurich Reinsurance.

B.S./M.S. 5-YEAR PROGRAM

Students pursuing undergraduate studies in the Mathematics and Statistics Department at Loyola are strongly encouraged to apply for the five-year combined B.S./M.S. degree. Please see the link Combined B.S./M.S. Programs.

Further Information

Further information about the Applied Statistics program may be found here: www.math.luc.edu/~tobrien/mspgm/mshome.html. Application for graduate study at Loyola University Chicago should be made online at the Graduate School (apply now). Applicants are required to submit three letters of recommendation and transcripts of all previous undergraduate and graduate work. If you have additional questions, please contact us.