Graduate Open Day
The Graduate Open Day is usually around October/November and further details will follow closer to the time.
About the course
The Master of Science (MSc) in Statistical Science is a twelve-month full-time taught master’s degree running from October to September each academic year. The course has a particular focus on modern computationally-intensive theory and methods. The MSc in Statistical Science will aim to train you to solve real-world statistical problems. The course will equip you to choose the most appropriate statistical method to solve a given problem of data analysis, implement the analysis on a computer and communicate your results clearly and succinctly.
Training is delivered through mathematically demanding lectures and problems classes, hands-on practical sessions in the computer laboratory, report writing and dissertation supervision. You will have around three months to work on your dissertation with guidance from your supervisor.
The Postgraduate Diploma in Statistical Science is a nine-month taught course, running from October each academic year. It is similar to the MSc in Statistical Science but there is no dissertation.
The MSc was 12 months extremely well spent. I was able to take a wide range of classes covering cutting edge modern techniques, and put those skills into practice via the programming-oriented assessments. The dissertation was an excellent chance to develop research skills and dive deeper into an area of interest. Finally, I also got the chance to meet many wonderful people in my cohort, sharing knowledge and forming great friendships.
Alexander Barry
Course Details
Students can expect to take four or five courses each term (or, in exceptional cases, three or six) for a total of nine courses. These are made up of five core courses and four optional courses. The optional courses available will vary from year to year. The core courses available each year may also vary.
2024-2025 core courses
- Applied Statistics
- Statistical Inference
- Statistical Programming
- Computational Statistics
- Statistical Machine Learning
2024-2025 options
- Stochastic Models in Mathematical Genetics
- Probability and Statistics for Network Analysis
- Advanced Topics in Statistical Machine Learning
- Advanced Simulation Methods
- Graphical Models
- Bayes Methods
- Algorithmic Foundations of Learning
- Climate Statistics
Assessment
You will be assessed on your performance in written examinations in May/June, through your work in the assessed practical problems set during the year, and by the quality and depth of your dissertation.
Entry Requirements
Please see the main graduate admissions page on the MSc in Statistical Science and PGDip in Statistical Science. For information on entry requirements.
To find out the sort of mathematical and statistical content you need to have studied, please refer to our MSc Prerequisites.
Fees and Funding
For information on fees and funding, visit the University fees and funding webpage. To help you find funding, the University provides a fees, funding and scholarship search.
Jane Street Scholarships
The Mathematical Institute, Department of Computer Science and the Department of Statistics at the University of Oxford are consistently ranked amongst the very best mathematical sciences and computer science departments in the world, for both teaching and research. The Jane Street Graduate Scholarships are four fully funded scholarships for UK Black or Mixed-Black students applying to courses from these departments.
How to apply
Admissions for 2025-26 open in September 2024.
Applicants should complete and submit their application online, via the University’s online form. Applicants should upload electronic copies of supporting materials (including written materials and their CV). Applicants can also register the email details of their referees online and the University will contact them directly to request references, confidentially and securely.
Paper applications are acceptable in exceptional cases where it is not possible for you to apply online; to inquire about whether your circumstances qualify for this exception, please contact the Graduate Admissions Office.
There is an application fee for each programme of study that applicants apply to.
More detailed information on how to apply to the MSc or PGDip in Statistical Science is available on the University pages about the MSc in Statistical Science or the PGDip in Statistical Science. For guidance on how to complete your application, please refer to the online Application Guide.
Any Questions?
If you have any questions please check out our Frequently Asked Questions page first. If you cannot find the answer to your question, you can e-mail graduate.admissions@stats.ox.ac.uk.
Contact
Email: graduate.admissions@stats.ox.ac.uk