Data Science, BS (CS)
Majoring in data science at Purdue will place you at the forefront of an emerging field and prepare you for an exciting career at the intersection of computer science and statistics. Created jointly by Purdue’s Department of Computer Science and Department of Statistics, the data science major will open pathways to careers in virtually every area of society, from healthcare, security and sustainability to education, business and economics.
Curriculum and Degree Requirements for College of Science
- Major
- Science Core Curriculum
- Electives
Students may use any of the following options to meet College of Science degree requirements:
- Purdue Coursework
- Ap, IB, and CLEP credit. The use of AP and IB coursework varies between College of Science degree plans.
- Transfer Credit. Students should consult the Admissions Transfer Credit Resource page for all available transfer options.
College of Science degree programs vary widely in their approval and use of the proceeding options and thus students are strongly encouraged to work closely with their academic advisors and to regularly consult their MyPurduePlan to view the use of each option in their degree plan.
Most College of Science degree programs contain elective credits students may use to pursue courses that relate to their interests or which support their major area of study. The elective area of a degree plan may also be used to complete minors, second majors and certificates such as the Entrepreneurial Certificate. With the exception of courses on the No Count List, any Purdue course may be used to meet the elective area of a student’s degree plan.
College of Science Core Requirements
All Students starting Purdue University Fall semester, 2007 or later are required to pursue the 2007 Science Core curriculum.
The College of Science Core Curriculum requires the completion of approved coursework and/or experiential learning opportunities in the following academic areas:
- Composition and Presentation
- Computing
- Culture and Diversity
- General Education
- Great Issues in Science
- Laboratory Science
- Mathematics
- Multidisciplinary Experience
- Statistics
- Teambuilding and Collaboration
- No Count List
Earning Core Curricular Requirements through Experience
Students may meet selected core curriculum requirements through approved experiential learning opportunities. Interested students should contact their academic advisor for more information on this option and incorporating experiential learning into their four-year program of study. For more information on earning requirements through experience, please click here.
Degree Requirements
120 Credits Required
Data Science Major Courses (47-51 credits)
- MA 35100 - Elementary Linear Algebra
- CS 18000 - Problem Solving And Object-Oriented Programming ♦ (satisfies College of Science Computing and Teambuilding requirements)
- CS 18200 - Foundations Of Computer Science
- CS 19100 - Freshman Resources Seminar
- CS 25100 - Data Structures And Algorithms
- STAT 41600 - Probability
- STAT 41700 - Statistical Theory
- MA 26100 - Multivariate Calculus or
- MA 27101 - Honors Multivariate Calculus
- CS 49000 - Topics In Computer Sciences For Undergraduates - Large Scale Data Analysis (LSDA) or
- STAT 49000 - Topics In Statistics For Undergraduates - Large Scale Data Analysis (LSDA)
- CS Elective I - Credit Hours: 3.00
- CS Elective II - Credit Hours: 3.00
- STAT Elective - Credit Hours: 3.00
- Capstone Course or Experience - Credit Hours 0.00 - 3.00
Other Departmental/Program Course Requirements (45-55 credits)
- ENGL 10600 - First-Year Composition(satisfies Written Communication and Information Literacy for core) or
- ENGL 10800 - Accelerated First-Year Composition(satisfies Written Communication and Information Literacy for core) or
- SCLA 10100 - Transformative Texts, Critical Thinking And Communication I: Antiquity To Modernity or
- HONR 19903 - Interdisciplinary Approaches In Writing(satisfies Written Communication and Information Literacy for core)
- MA 16100 - Plane Analytic Geometry And Calculus I ♦(satisfies Quantitative Reasoning for core) -must have C or better to meet prerequisite for CS 18200 or
- MA 16500 - Analytic Geometry And Calculus I ♦ (satisfies Quantitative Reasoning for core) - must have C or better to meet prerequisite for CS 18200 )
- MA 16200 - Plane Analytic Geometry And Calculus II(satisfies Quantitative Reasoning for core) or
- MA 16600 - Analytic Geometry And Calculus II(satisfies Quantitative Reasoning for core)
- Technical Writing - COM 21700 recommended (may satisfy Oral Communication for core) select from list - Credit Hours: 3.00
- Technical Presentation - COM 21700 recommended (may satisfy Oral Communication for core) select from list - Credit Hours: 3.00
- Language I * - Select three options from list - Credit Hours: 3.00 - 4.00
- Language II * - Select three options from list - Credit Hours: 3.00 - 4.00
- Language and Culture III - (may satisfy Human Cultures Humanities for core) select three options from list - Credit Hours: 3.00 - 4.00
- General Education I - (may satisfy Human Culture Humanities and Behavioral/Social Science for core) select from list - Credit Hours: 3.00
- General Education II - (may satisfy Human Culture Humanities and Behavioral/Social Science for core) -select from list - Credit Hours: 3.00
- General Education III - select from list - Credit Hours: 3.00
- Great Issues - select from list - Credit Hours: 3.00
- Multidisciplinary Experience - (may satisfy Science, Technology & Society for core) - select from list - Credit Hours: 1.00 - 3.00
- Teambuilding and Collaboration Experience - (CS 18000meets requirement) Select from list
- Lab Science I selective - (satisfies Science for core) - Select from list - Credit Hours: 3.00 - 4.00
- Lab Science II selective - (may satisfy Science for core) - Select from list - Credit Hours: 3.00 - 4.00
Electives (14-28 credits)
University Core Requirements
- Human Cultures Humanities
- Human Cultures Behavioral/Social Science
- Information Literacy
- Science #1
- Science #2
- Science, Technology, and Society
- Written Communication
- Oral Communication
- Quantitative Reasoning
For a complete listing of course selectives, visit the Provost’s Website.
Prerequisite Information:
For current pre-requisites for courses, click here.
