This program will begin in the fall 2025 semester. Applications are currently being accepted.

Standardized test scores: GRE general test (institutional code 5246)
Language: The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), the academic International English Language Testing System (IELTS), or the PTE Academic is required of all applicants except those who hold a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree from a college or university in the United States or from an institution located in a country in which English is the official language, provided English was the language of instruction. Minimum scores: Academic IELTS: an overall band score of 7.0 with no individual score below 6.0; or TOEFL: 600 on paper-based or 100 on Internet-based; or PTE Academic: 53
Two (2) letters of recommendation
Degree of BA or BS in Political Science, Statistics, Economics, Sociology, or a related field
Successful completion of an undergraduate course in statistics
Statement of purpose: In an essay of 250-500 words, state your purpose in undertaking graduate study in your chosen field. Include your academic objectives, research interests, and career plans. Also, please discuss your related qualifications, including collegiate, professional, and community activities, and any other substantial accomplishments not already mentioned on the application.

This program will begin in the fall 2025 semester. Applications are currently being accepted.

The following requirements must be fulfilled:

The general requirements stated under Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, Graduate Programs.

30 credits, including 12 credits in required core courses, 9 credits in selected quantitative courses, 3 credits in required skills courses, and 6 credits in elective courses.

Required
Core courses
QSS 6000Seminar in Quantitative Social Science
QSS 6001Data Visualization
QSS 6002Probability and Statistical Modeling
QSS 6500Capstone Research
Quantitative courses
Three courses (9 credits) selected from the following:
ECON 6335Applied Financial Derivatives
ECON 6378Machine Learning for Economics
PSC 8121Causal Inference
or ECON 6379 Causal Inference and Research Design
or STAT 6230 Causal Inference
PSC 8124Multilevel Modeling
PSC 8128Surveys and Experiments
PSC 8185Topics in Empirical and Formal Political Analysis
SOC 6291Methods of Demographic Analysis
STAT 6217Design of Experiments
STAT 6225Longitudinal Data Analysis
STAT 6231Categorical Data Analysis
STAT 6240Statistical Data Mining
STAT 6250A/B Testing (Design and Analysis)
STAT 6260Statistical Deep Learning
STAT 6287Sample Surveys
Skills courses
QSS 6005Topics in QSS Technical Skills (taken twice for a total of 3 credits) *
Electives
Two courses (6 credits) selected from graduate courses in political science, sociology, statistics, or another program or department with the permission of the program’s director of graduate studies.

*Technical skills courses are six-week modules for 1.5 credits per module. Students must take two technical skills courses, focused on different skills, in the same semester. Options might include Python, SQL & Databases, Machine Learning, Bayesian Statistics, and More in R. A fourth quantitative course may be substituted for the skills requirement with the approval of the program’s director of graduate studies.