MSTAT / Biostatistics Admissions

Minimum Requirements

  1. Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university with at least a cumulative 3.0 GPA
  2. Two semesters of undergraduate calculus, evidence of multivariate calculus, two semesters of biology, programming language, knowledge of matrix theory and at least two semester courses in basic statistics

Application for admission to the MSTAT Program is made to the graduate school via SOPHAS and ApplyYourself (see Application page). Although the track and the MSTAT program can recommend admission, only the graduate school can formally admit a candidate.

International applicants must also include official TOEFL scores. The International Admissions Office requires at least iBT 80 or pBT 550 or an IELTS score of at least 6.5.

Additional Biostatistics Track Admissions Criteria

Admissions to the Biostatistics Program are highly competitive. Admissions decisions will be based on an evaluation of the individual’s application.

Prerequisites for the biostatistics track

All general MSTAT requirements, plus the following:

  • Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university—at least a cumulative 3.0 GPA
  • Two (2) semesters of undergraduate statistics (applied or theoretical, such as Math 3070-3080)
  • Two (2) semesters of undergraduate biology
  • Two (2) semesters of undergraduate calculus
  • Evidence of Multivariate calculus
  • Knowledge of a programming language*
  • Knowledge of matrix algebra (such as Math 2270)

Students who have not completed all of the prerequisites may be rejected. A grade of B- or better is required in all prerequisites. Failure to meet these prerequisites will require explanation for the file to be considered further. See MSTAT program policies & guidelines probationary admissions policy.

*The programming language is to be a real programming language, not statistical software or a database. However, the faculty will consider an application in which the student demonstrated that they can program macros in SAS, Stata or R, in lieu of the programming prerequisite. The prerequisite of ‘knowledge of a programming language’ requires documentation that goes beyond personal assertion. This could be a course documented in a transcript, a letter from a knowledgeable faculty member or reference person who knows that the candidate knows/has experience with a specific programming language, a copy of a certification or certificate of completion or other concrete documentation of knowledge of that programming language. The prerequisite of knowledge of matrix algebra is similar.