Curriculum Guide
Department Website
Career Services
Statistics is the science of data - the collection, management, analysis and interpretation of data. Statistics is an essential tool in almost every field in undertaking research, product testing and development, quality control, and decision-making. AREA OF EMPHASIS AT DELAWARE The Statistics major is a combination of a core set of theoretical and methods courses in statistics, and courses in fields of application. The core course work is designed to prepare students for advanced study in statistics by emphasizing a foundation in probability and mathematical statistics, as well as courses in statistical methods such as experimental design and regression. Students will learn the logic of statistical inference; how to design an experiment to maximize the ability to find an effect or to rule out a null hypothesis; model building for weather, the economy, or customer sales; and strategies to determine whether a drug or a program had a significant impact on a group of subjects. Statistics are used in virtually every professional field as a way to conduct research and make important decisions. These include the pure sciences such as biology, chemistry and physics, as well as engineering, business, medicine, and the social sciences (economics, political science, psychology, and sociology). Majors will combine statistical knowledge with course work in other fields to create an area of application that will serve as a basis for the application of statistics courses, such as economics, biology, or business. The area of application may well be a minor or a second major. The role of the statistician is to help others use and analyze their data in such a way as to have confidence in the results and the decisions based upon the analysis. The statistician must skillfully combine technical skills, problem solving and the ability to share this information with lay clientele.
