Data Science CS Degree Requirements - Fall 2019

The first computer science and math courses of the data science degree are almost identical to those of the computer science degree. They lay the foundation of basic principles and skills for the major. The first data science courses in the plan of study are taken in the sophomore year: CS 242, Introduction to Data Science, and STAT 355, Statistics for Data Science. In addition to the body of courses required of all College of Science students, data science majors will take courses in data mining and machine learning, data analytics, probability, and statistical theory. A capstone course or experience is also part of the data science major. Other computer science and statistics electives allow students to tailor the major to personal interests.

All beginning data science majors are required to take CS 19100, Freshman Resources Seminar and CS 19300, Tools. These are 1 credit courses that Computer Science students take in their first semester. Students are equally encouraged to take CS 29100, Sophomore Development Seminar, and CS 39100, Junior Resource Seminar.

All DSCS required courses, all DSCS electives, and their pre-requisites, regardless of department, must be completed with a grade of C or better.

Course	Title	Credits	Semester
CS 18000	Problem Solving and Object-Oriented Programming	4	1
CS 18200	Foundations of Computer Science	3	2
CS 38003	Python Programming	1	2
CS 24200	Introduction to Data Science	3	3
STAT 35500	Statistics for Data Science	3	3
CS 25100	Data Structures & Algorithms	3	4
STAT 41600	Probability	3	4
CS 37300	Data Mining and Machine Learning	3	5
STAT 41700	Statistical Theory	3	5
CS 49000 LSDA	Large Scale Data Analytics	3	7
CS 45800	Data Science Capstone	0-3	8

Transfer credit (including credit from regional campuses) for 100 and 200 level core courses is possible only if those courses are taken before the student enters the Purdue West Lafayette Computer Science program. The Department of Computer Science does not accept transfer credit for 300 or 400 level DS or CS coursework (with the exception of pre-approved Study Abroad coursework). 

Detailed Data Science Description and Plan of Study from the University Catalog

Data Science Electives

The Data Science major requires two additional CS elective courses and one STAT elective course beyond the requirements in the table above.  Required electives must be selected from the following tables.

CS Elective Group 1	At least one elective is required from this group
CS 30700	Software Engineering I
CS 31400	Numerical Methods
CS 34800	Information Systems
CS 38100	Introduction to the Analysis of Algorithms
CS 47300	Web Information Search and Management

 

CS Elective Group 2	At least one elective is required from this group
CS 35500	Introduction to Cryptography
CS 44800	Introduction to Relational Database Systems
CS 47100	Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
CS 48300	Introduction to Theory of Computation
CS 49000 IDV	Introduction to Data Visualization

 

STAT Electives	At least one elective is required from this group
STAT 40600	Statistical Programming and Data Management
STAT 42000	Introduction to Time Series
MA/STAT 49000	Elementary Stochastic Processes
STAT 51200	Applied Regression Analysis
STAT 51300	Statistical Quality Control
STAT 51400	Design of Experiments
STAT 52200	Sampling and Survey Techniques
STAT 52500	Intermediate Statistical Methodology

Transfer credit (including credit from regional campuses) for 100 and 200 level core courses is possible only if those courses are taken before the student enters the Purdue West Lafayette Computer Science program. The Department of Computer Science does not accept transfer credit for 300 or 400 level DS coursework (with the exception of pre-approved Study Abroad coursework). 

Unacceptable courses for credit for Data Science students in College of Science

 

Curriculum Resources

Data Science prerequisite flowchart (PDF)

Visit the Curriculum Resources page to find Sample Plans of Study. Courses do not need to be taken in sequential order as long as prerequisites and co-requisites are met.

Capstone Requirement

View details on the capstone requirement.