Prospective Students

We have closed our FALL 2025 enrollment

 

We have filled out all our available slots for Fall 2025. We anticipate to have a limited number of seats available in January 2026.
Please come back here in December 2025 for further information and instructions about our SPRING 2026 enrollment.

The DATA Minor Fundamental Statistics Prerequisite:

In order to enroll in the Data Science minor, students must take DATA100, STAT100, MATH135, DATA400, or any 400-level STAT course, or their UMD approved equivalents, as a prerequisite for declaring the minor.

Please note the following important information regarding the DATA Minor Fundamental Statistics Prerequisite

  • Please note that statistics courses offered by departments other than MATH and STAT are not a sufficient prerequisite for the DATA minor. Your department may consider some of their courses as equivalent to STAT courses, but we only recognize courses which are officially approved by the University as equivalent to any of the above listed courses (this list is short and includes: ENEE324, SURV410, SURV440, BIOE372).
  • Please note that Calculus is not a sufficient prerequisite for the DATA minor.
  • Please note that we do not accept co-requisites – the prerequisite must be completed before a request to enroll in the DATA minor is submitted.

Please note that the following can be used to fulfill the DATA Minor Fundamental Statistics Prerequisite:

  • AP Statistics (90) with a score of 4 or 5
  • IB Mathematics HL Analysis/Approaches with a score of 5, 6, or 7
  • IB Mathematics HL Applications/Interpretation with a score of 5, 6, or 7
  • Approved transfer courses, please see the Transfer Course Database

In all cases, scores/grades must be submitted to and approved by UMD’s Office of the University Registrar prior to submitting a request to enroll in the DATA minor.

Restrictions:

Students in the Mathematics – Statistics Track (1701S) major or Computer Science – Data Science specialization (0701B) major or Computer Science – Machine Learning specialization (0701F) major may not enroll in the Data Science minor.

DATA Minor Required Coursework:

Course Title Credits
DATA110 Applications of R for Data Science 1 credit
DATA120 Python Programming for Data Science 1 credit
DATA200 Knowledge in Society: Science, Data and Ethics 3 credits
DATA250 Discrete Mathematics 4 credits
DATA320 Introduction to Data Science 3 credits
DATA350 Data Visualization and Presentation 3 credits
DATA400 Applied Probability and Statistics I 3 credits
  • In the DATA minor all course prerequisites are strictly enforced
  • MATH141 is not a prerequisite for the DATA minor, but it is a prerequisite for DATA250 and DATA400
  • We do not accept co-requisites
  • At least 6 upper division credits applied to the minor must be taken at UMD-CP
    and no more than a total of 6 transfer credits can be applied to the minor
  • There must not be more than 6 shared credits (or 2 shared courses) with the major
  • No course may be used to satisfy the requirements of more than one minor.

Course Substitutions:

  • DATA250 can be replaced by CMSC250 and MATH240, or by CMSC250 and MATH341, or by CMSC250 and MATH461.
  • DATA320 can be replaced by CMSC320.
  • DATA400 can be replaced by ENEE324, or STAT400, or STAT410, or SURV410.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use statistics courses offered by other departments as my Prerequisite?
  • DATA Minor Fundamental Statistics Prerequisite consists of the following courses: DATA100, STAT100, MATH135, DATA400, or any 400-level STAT course, or their UMD approved equivalents: BIOE372, ENEE324, SURV410, SURV420, SURV440. No other courses can be used as DATA Minor prerequisites.
  • The prerequisite course must have been completed before your request to enroll in the DATA minor was approved, and it cannot be changed later.
  • Specifically, none of the following courses suffices to be a prerequisite for the DATA Minor BMGT230, CCJS200, GEOL351, ENST321, ENME392, ENCE302, ENCE303, ENBC332, ENEB345, ECON230, ECON321, PHYS404, QMMS451, PSYC200, JOUR405, KNES265, INST314, SOCY201, SOCY401.
  • The complete list of possible prerequisite courses consists of: DATA100, STAT100, MATH135, DATA400, ENEE324, SURV410, SURV420, SURV440, BIOE372, STAT400, STAT401, STAT410, STAT420, STAT422, STAT426, STAT430, STAT440, STAT464, STAT470.
  • Typically the following courses are used as prerequisites for DATA Minor: DATA100, STAT100, MATH135,  ENEE324, BIOE372, DATA400, STAT400, STAT410, SURV410, STAT464.
  • If you still have any doubts or questions, please reach out to us.
What if I took a MATH course with a number higher than 135?
  • The DATA Minor Fundamental Statistics Prerequisite is a 1-semester statistics course offered by the Department of Mathematics. Courses which are not on the subject of statistics are not suitable as a prerequisite for the DATA Minor, regardles of the number.
  • Specifically please note that Calculus is not a sufficient prerequisite for the DATA minor and MATH135 is NOT a Calculus course.
Can I take DATA100/STAT100 after already having taken DATA400/STAT400 and change my prerequisite?
  • Short answer: NO.
  • Long answer: Still NO. The reason is that DATA100/STAT100 have a restriction: must not have completed any STAT course with a prerequisite of MATH141. As DATA400/STAT400 have MATH141 as prerequisite, registering for DATA100/STAT100 after completing DATA400/STAT400 is not allowed.
How many courses can be double counted for my major and the DATA Minor?
  • The University rule states that: No more than six credits (or two courses) may be applied to satisfy both the requirements of a minor and a major program. This rule cover various possibilities:
    • Two courses worth 3 credits, each.
    • One course worth 4 credits and 2 one-credit courses.
    • Any other combination of multiple courses (can be more than 2) as long as the toal sum of credits equals 6. The extreme case would be six 1-credit courses.
    • Two courses worth 4 credits each.
    • Two courses worth any number of credits (can be more than 6).
  • The course used for the DATA Minor prerequsite does NOT count as an overlap with your major.
  • If more than one course is used to substitute for a DATA course (e.g., CMSC250 and MATH240, or CMSC250 and MATH341, or CMSC250 and MATH461, to substitute for DATA250), then these courses count as a single course for the purposes of the overlap count, and the number of credits is that of the substituted single course (so in case of substituting for DATA250, CMSC250 and MATH240 count as a single course worth 4 credits, even though these are two courses worth a total of 8 credits).
How many courses can be double counted for the DATA Minor and any other minor?
  • No course can be used to satisfy the requirements of two different minors at UMD.
  • The course used for the DATA Minor prerequsite does NOT count as an overlap with your other minor.
Does my DATA Minor prerequisite course count as an overlap between the DATA Minor and my major (or another minor)?

No. The course used for your DATA Minor prerequisite is not considered part of the required courses and as such it does NOT count as an overlap between the DATA Minor and your major or another minor.

Can I replace any of the DATA Minor required courses with some other courses?

Yes, there are two types of approved substitutions:

  • Standard Course Substitutions:
    • DATA250 can be replaced by CMSC250 and MATH240, or by CMSC250 and MATH341, or by CMSC250 and MATH461.
    • DATA320 can be replaced by CMSC320.
    • DATA400 can be replaced by ENEE324, or STAT400, or STAT410, or SURV410.
  • If DATA400, STAT400, ENEE324, STAT410 or SURV410 is used as a prerequisite to join the minor, then another 400-level STAT course or CMSC498Y must be taken in lieu of the DATA400 requirement.

For Other Questions:

  • If you have any questions about the DATA minor, please reach out to the Program Director at data-director@umd.edu
  • In your inquiries, please attach a pdf copy of your current unofficial transcript (not a link)
  • We will respond to inquiries within 3-5 business days

Office Hours:

Until the end of the Fall 2025 enrollment period (October 10, 2025), all office hours are by appointment only. Please email data-director@umd.edu to schedule a Zoom appointment.

Date Time Format
October 24, 2025 8:30-9:30 In person
October 31, 2025 8:30-9:30 In person
November 7, 2025 8:30-9:30 In person
November 14, 2025 8:30-9:30 In person
November 21, 2025 9:30-10:30 In person
December 5, 2025 8:30-9:30 In person
December 12, 2025 8:30-9:30 In person

 

In person office hours are held in Mathematics Building, room 2105 (MTH2105) on a first come – first served basis.

For online office hours, please email data-director@umd.edu ahead of time, to receive a personalized Zoom link.