1. Do you offer Part-Time, Distance and Evening Programs?
2. Can I transfer from another institution?
3. How do I reactivate my application?
4. Is it possible to apply to two departments?
5. Does Statistics admit applicants for the Spring semester?
6. Can I study towards a graduate degree in Statistics part time?
7. Is there a separate application for fellowships?
8. What are the minimum admission requirements?
9. What are the average GRE scores obtained by those who were admitted to your program?
10. What is the Department's code to have official GRE scores sent?
11. Is the Math Subject test required?
12. Can the TOEFL be waived?
13. Can I submit test scores before I apply?
14. Does the Department of Statistics require that I calculate and list my grade-point average (GPA) on the application?
15. Does the Department require applicants to contact faculty before submitting an application?
16. Does the Department require applicants to list faculty in the department whose research is of interest to them?
17. Where do I send the application fee?
18. How many students are admitted each year?
19. When will applicants be notified regarding the admission decisions?
20. What is the cost of graduate study at UC Berkeley?
21. Can I apply if I already have a M.A. or Ph.D. degree?
22. Is it possible to apply to both the M.A. and Ph.D. programs?
23. Will my application be considered for the M.A. program if I'm not admitted for the Ph.D.?
24. What are some recent graduates doing now?

Q1: Do you offer Part-Time, Distance and Evening Programs?
We do not offer any part-time, evening or distance learning degree programs. All our degree programs are full-time. [back to top]

Q2: Can I transfer from another institution?
We do not have a separate application procedure for applicants who wish to transfer to our program from another graduate program at another institution. Applicants should follow our normal application directions. [back to top]

Q3: How do I reactivate my application?
If you applied for admission in a previous year, your application cannot be reactivated for this year. You will have to start a new application and pay the application fee. This is true of all previous applicants without exception. 

Q4: Is it possible to apply to two departments?
The University does not allow applicants to apply to two departments simultaneously unless there is an established concurrent degree program between the two departments or schools (http://www.grad.berkeley.edu/programs/concurrent.shtml). Statistics does not have a concurrent degree program. [back to top]

Q5: Does Statistics admit applicants for the Spring semester?
No, we only admit students for the Fall semester. [back to top]

Q6: Can I study towards a graduate degree in Statistics part time?
The Department does not allow part-time graduate study. All students are required to maintain a full-time load of 12 units. There are no evening or weekend courses. However, the UC Berkeley Extension offers evening and weekend classes in locations throughout California. [back to top]

Q7: Is there a separate application for fellowships?
No, there is only one application for admission and fellowships. [back to top]

Q8: What are the minimum admission requirements?

• Background in mathematics, statistics, or a quantitative field
• General GRE scores (GMAT scores are not accepted in place of the GRE)
• Three letters of recommendation
• Official transcripts from each school at which you have completed college-level work. Transcripts not in English should be accompanied by translations from the university that issued them.
• Descriptive list of upper division math courses: Please include department, course number and course title; Instructor; Grade: School; Test used and subject matter covered
• Applicants from countries in which English is not the official language are required to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Minimum score: computer based: 230; paper based: 570; internet based (iBT): 90. [back to top]

Q9: What are the average GRE scores obtained by those who were admitted to your program?
Admissions is based on all aspects of the application, not just GRE scores.  While there is no minimum requirement for the GRE, admitted applicants generally score in the high percentiles especially on the quantitative section of the exam. The following are the average scores of those admitted last year: 

MA admitted applicants (in percentiles): Verbal 70%, Quantitative 94%, Analytical Writing 48%[back to top]

Q10: What is the Department's code to have official GRE scores sent?
Official scores must be sent directly from ETS.  The institution code for Berkeley is 4833 and the Department code is 0705 for Statistics. [back to top]

Q11: Is the Math Subject test required?
We do not require the Math subject test but if the scores are available you may submit it as part of your application. [back to top]

Q12: Can the TOEFL be waived?
If you have completed at least one year of full-time academic course work with grades of B or better in residence at a recognized U.S. institution, you do not need to take a standardized test.  Instead, you must submit an official transcript from the recognized U.S. institution. The following courses will not fulfill this requirement:

1. courses in English as a second language
2. courses conducted in a language other than English
3. courses that will be completed after the application is submitted, and
4. courses of nonacademic nature. For more information follow this link. [back to top]

Q13: Can I submit test scores before I apply?
You can self-report your scores in the online application.  Once we receive your official scores, they will be matched to your application. [back to top]

Q14: Does the Department of Statistics require that I calculate and list my grade-point average (GPA) on the application?
Yes. Applicants who received their undergraduate degree at an American university or college are required to list their cumulative GPA, major GPA (all courses completed in their major area of study), and advanced GPA (all course work excluding the first two years of study). If you attended a university that does not use the 4.0 system, please do not try and convert your grades to our system--just leave that section blank. [back to top]

Q15: Does the Department require applicants to contact faculty before submitting an application?
No, this is not required. [back to top]

Q16: Does the Department require applicants to list faculty in the department whose research is of interest to them?
No, we do not require this of our applicants. [back to top]

Q17: Where do I send the application fee?
Please follow the Graduate Division instructions. Applicants must pay the fee online by credit card when they submit their application. Please do not mail your fee payment to the Statistics Department. This will delay crediting the payment to your application. [back to top]

Q18: How many students are admitted each year?
Statistics receives between 150-200 applications for admission to the PhD program each year and approximately 400-600 for the MA program. We typically recommend for admission between 14-20 PhD students to achieve an incoming class of 8-10 PhD students. For the MA program, we usually recommend for admission 80-90 students per year to achieve an incoming class of 40. [back to top]

Q19: When will applicants be notified regarding the admission decisions?
All applicants will be notified via email by the end of March. [back to top]

Q20: What is the cost of graduate study at UC Berkeley?
For more information about the costs of attending Berkeley and financial aid, see our financial support page. 

Q21: Can I apply if I already have a MA or Ph.D. degree?
For more information, please see the Graduate Division website for their policy on the Duplication of Degrees.
http://grad.berkeley.edu/policy/admissions-policy/#b13-evaluation-of-applicants [back to top]

Q22: Is it possible to apply to both the M.A. and Ph.D. program?
No, applicants may only apply to one program.  [back to top]

Q23: Will my application be considered for the M.A. program if I'm not admitted to the Ph.D.?
No, unfortunately, you must decide to which program you would like to be considered for.  [back to top]

Q24: What are some recent graduates doing now?

PhD:

Assistant Professor, Dept. of Statistics, University of Pennsylvania ; Assistant Professor, Dept. of Statistics and Operations Research, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; Postdoctoral Fellow, INRIA, France; Quantitative Analyst, Google, Inc; Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Cambridge, UK; Assistant Professor, Dept. of Statistics, Indiana University, Bloomington; Statistician, Genentech, Inc.; Postdoctoral Researcher, Microsoft Research; NSF Postdoc, Dept. of Statistics, Carnegie Mellon University; Research Scientist, SenseNetworks

MA:

JP Morgan Chase - Investment Banking Division, Associate; LinkedIn, Applied Researcher; Ascend Analytics, Developer of Risk Analytics; Citigroup, Quantitative Analyst; Fair Issac, Project Analyst; Google, Analyst; Hewitt Associates, Actuarial Associate; Hewitt Consulting, Actuarial Intern; Providian Financial, Financial Analyst; The Athenian School, Math Teacher; Tillinghost Business of Towers Perrin, Actuarial Consultant; Towers Perrin, Actuarial Associate; UCSF, Data Analyst; University of Washington, PhD Student; UPenn, Wharton School, Finance PhD Program; Wecker and Associates, Analyst; Wells Fargo, Trader

Note: Many of our former graduate students are now in senior positions in industry and return to the department to recruit current students. The department’s Industrial Alliance Program (IAP) also brings representatives of local firms to the department and creates recruitment opportunities for students. For a list of companies that founded the IAP and other companies that recruit in the department, please see our IAP page.