Stanford University

This interdisciplinary undergraduate degree program in MCS is sponsored by Stanford's departments of Statistics, Mathematics, Computer Science, and Management Science & Engineering, providing students with a core of mathematics basic to all the mathematical sciences and an introduction to concepts and techniques of computation, optimal decision making, probabilistic modeling, and statistical inference.

Utilizing the faculty and courses of the departments listed above, this major prepares students for graduate study or employment in the mathematical and computational sciences or in those areas of applied mathematics which center around the use of computers and are concerned with the problems of the social and management sciences. A biology option is offered for students interested in applications of mathematics, statistics, and computer science to the biological sciences (bioinformatics, computational biology, statistical genetics, neurosciences); and in a similar spirit, an engineering and statistics option.

The mission of the Mathematical and Computational Science Program is to provide students with a core of mathematics basic to all the mathematical sciences and an introduction to concepts and techniques of computation, optimal decision making, probabilistic modeling and statistical inference. The program is interdisciplinary in its focus, and students are required to complete course work in mathematics, computer science, statistics, and management science and engineering. A computational biology track is available for students interested in biomedical applications. The program prepares students for careers in academic, financial and government settings as well as for study in graduate or professional schools.

The Program in Mathematical and Computational Science (MCS) offers a Bachelor of Science in Mathematical and Computational Science. Eligible students may also pursue a Bachelor of Science with Honors.

How to Declare the Major

To declare the major, a student should first meet with an MCS peer advisor to create a proposed study plan and then with the MCS student services officer to discuss the major. Students ordinarily have taken two of the required MATH 50 series courses and a core Statistics course prior to declaration. Once the student has created a proposed study plan, they should connect with the MCS student services officer and declare the major through Axess. Students should have an overall grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 to declare.

Suggested Preparation for the Major

Students ordinarily would have taken two of the required Math courses (MATH51 Linear Algebra, Multivariable Calculus, and Modern Applications/MATH52 Integral Calculus of Several Variables/MATH53 Ordinary Differential Equations with Linear Algebra) and one of the required Statistics core courses (STATS116 Theory of Probability, STATS191 Introduction to Applied Statistics) before declaring MCS during their freshman or sophomore year.

The program expects undergraduate majors to be able to demonstrate the following learning outcomes. These learning outcomes are used in evaluating students and the department's undergraduate program. Students are expected to be able to demonstrate:

1. understanding of principles and tools of statistics.

2. command of optimization and its applications and the ability to analyze and interpret problems from various disciplines.

3. an understanding of computer applications emphasizing modern software engineering principles.

4. an understanding of multivariate calculus, linear algebra, and algebraic and geometric proofs.