Stanford University

Mathematical and Computational Science

Department
Mathematical and Computational Science (MCS) will stop accepting students to its program on
August 30, 2022. The program will remain available only to currently enrolled students who
declared prior to that deadline. MCS students who change majors can NOT switch back to MCS.
Students who are interested in this field of study in the future should consider the Data Science
major, whose B.S. option is very similar to MCS.

Contacts
Office: Sequoia Hall, 390 Jane Stanford Way
Mail Code: 94305-4065
Email: [email protected]
Web Site: https://mcs.stanford.edu/
Courses offered by Mathematical and Computational Science program are listed under the subject code
MCS on the Stanford Bulletin's ExploreCourses website.
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.

Undergraduate Mission Statement for Mathematical and

Computational Science
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.

Faculty

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Director: Professor Guenther Walther

Associate Director: Professor Chiara Sabatti
Faculty Advisors: Professor Guenther Walther, Professor Chiara Sabatti, Associate Professor John Duchi,
& Associate Professor Johan Ugander
Steering Committee: Takeshi Amemiya (Economics, emeritus), Emmanuel Candès (Mathematics,
Statistics), Brian Conrad (Mathematics), Richard Cottle (Management Science and Engineering,
emeritus), John Duchi (Electrical Engineering & Statistics), Darrel Duffie (Economics & GSB), Bradley
Efron (Statistics), Peter Glynn (Management Science and Engineering), Ramesh Johari (Management
Science and Engineering), Percy Liang (Computer Science & Statistics), Parviz Moin (Mechanical
Engineering), George Papanicolaou (Mathematics), David Rogosa (Education & Statistics), Chiara Sabatti
(Biomedical Data Science & Statistics), David Siegmund (Statistics), Jonathan Taylor (Statistics), Brian
White (Mathematics)

Courses
Course Description Course Description
The class allows students to grow their ability to For students majoring in Mathematical and
communicate ideas and insights with data. There Computational Science only. Students obtain
are many components of a well-crafted narrative employment in a relevant industrial or research
based on data---from a discussion of data sources activity to enhance their professional experience.
to visualization, and from pattern detection to Students may enroll in Summer Quarters only and
generalizable conclusions---which we explore in for a total of three times. Students must first
sequence across the quarter. The class does not notify their MCS adviser before enrolling in their
introduce advanced data analysis techniques. It course section, and must submit a one-page
rather focuses on the essential elements of an written final report summarizing the
inquiry conducted with data and places a special knowledge/experience gained upon completion of
emphasis on how to record and communicate the internship in order to receive credit.Please
these. Each student enrolled in class needs to note that F-1 international students enrolled in
identify a dataset and a question that they are their department¿s CPT course cannot start
going to explore. As we examine the different working without first obtaining a CPT-endorsed I-
components of a data inquiry, the students will 20 from Bechtel International Center (enrolling in
carry out a corresponding analysis/writing the CPT course alone is insufficient to meet
assignment on the data they have identified, federal immigration regulations).
gradually building material for the narrative that Grading Basis
will constitute their final paper. This course is RSN - Satisfactory/No Credit
required for students participating in SURP-Stats
and for Data Science BS students who are fulfilling Units Course
their capstone requirement with independent Min Max Component
research (including Honors thesis) or with DATASCI 1 1 Code Individual
190. Prerequisite: Stats191 or equivalent. (WIM) INS Study
Cross Listed Courses Grading Basis Instructor
Contact Hours
DATASCI120 DATA ROP - Letter or Contact Workload
Value

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DATASCI120 DATA ROP - Letter or Contact Workload
Value
NARRATIVES Credit/No Credit Hours Hours
0
0 0
Units Course
OEE
Min Max Code Component Academic WorkloadInstruction
3 3 LEC Lecture Progress Hours Hours Mode
Instructor Value 0 In Person
Contact Workload 1
Contact Hours Default
Hours Hours
Value Enrollment
Section
0 0
0 Financial Aid Optional?Size
OEE Hours No 30
WorkloadInstruction Value
Academic Hours Mode
Include in
1
Progress Hours 0 In Person
Final Dynamic
Value Exam Date Calc
Default Course
3 No No
Enrollment
Section Repeatable
Generate Auto
Optional?Size Course for Degree
Attendance
Create
Financial Aid No 30 Count Credit?
No Yes
Hours Include in
1 Yes
Value Attendance
Present
Final Dynamic Total
3 Type Use
Exam Date Calc CompletionsTotal Units
Meeting Yes
No No Allowed for Allowed for
Course Degree Degree Reason Tardy
Generate Auto
Repeatable Credit Credit Use Use
Attendance
Create
Course for Degree 3 4 Yes Yes
No Yes
Count Credit?
Contact
1 No Attendance
Present
Left Use Use
Type Use
Total Yes Yes
Meeting Yes
CompletionsTotal Units
Template
Allowed for Allowed for Reason Tardy
Time Use Override
Degree Degree Use Use
Yes No
Credit Credit Yes Yes
Exam
1 3 Contact
Seat
Left Use Use
Spacing
Yes Yes
1
Template
Time Use Override Does this course satisfy the University
Yes No Language Requirement?
Exam No
Seat
Spacing

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Does this course satisfy the University

Language Requirement?
No

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