Information for Undergraduates who have Taken AP Statistics in High School

Last update: 8/21/08

This note is for students who have completed an AP statistics class in high school and earned a grade of 4 or 5 on the College Board AP Statistics Examination or who have completed an equivalent class in high school or elsewhere and earned a high grade.

The Department of Statistics at the University of Chicago recognizes the quality of the AP statistics program and the advantages of a year-long introduction to statistical reasoning that is possible in a high school setting. Students who have accomplished this should consider classes beyond Stat 22000 as starting points in the Department of Statistics. Students who have a calculus background in addition to a background in statistics especially are encouraged to explore more advanced options.

In particular, the two-quarter sequence Stat 24400-24500 offered Autumn/Winter and Winter/Spring provides a mathematical introduction to probability and statistics that builds nicely on an AP high school statistics background. These courses use multi-variable calculus and some linear algebra to facilitate discussion of the reasons behind many of the statistical rules and explain in a more rigorous manner many of the concepts encountered in AP Statistics (or Stat 20000 or Stat 22000). Stat 24400-24500 are best taken as a two-quarter sequence.

An excellent option requiring only single-variable calculus and no linear algebra background is Stat 23400. This course covers essentially the same material as AP Statistics, Stat 22000, or Stat 24400-24500 and is a great place to start for students who have completed AP Statistics. The expected mathematical ability level is higher than for AP Statistics or Stat 22000, but not as high as is needed for Stat 24400-24500. Stat 23400 still requires univariate calculus as a prerequisite, but not multi-variable calculus, nor linear algebra. Like Stat 24400-24500, mathematics is used to explore the underpinnings of some of the statistical methods covered in an introductory course, such as AP Statistics. Note: Credit cannot be earned for both Stat 22000 and Stat 23400.

Majors in statistics must take Stat 24400-24500, rather than Stat 23400. Stat 23400 is required for economics majors as preparation for the econometrics course ECON 21000. Stat 24400-24500 (preceded by MATH 203) is an option for economics majors for preparation for honors econometrics (ECON 20900). Thus, choosing the right course sequence for you is important. If you do not anticipate a degree in a science field and do not anticipate working in a very quantitative area, but want to learn more about probability and statistics, then Stat 23400 followed by Stat 22400 (Applied Regression Analysis in Autumn) or Stat 22600 (Categorical Data Analysis in Winter) would be a good way to continue after high school AP statistics. If you anticipate majoring in a science area or working in a quantitative area and taking advanced calculus and linear algebra, then STAT 24400-24500 probably will be more appropriate for you.

Another option for students with a background in statistics is Stat 25100, which is offered in the Spring and focuses on probability. The mathematical level of Stat 25100 is generally higher than that in Stat 22000, 23400, 22200, 22400, or 22600. It could be taken as a first course, especially after courses in calculus in the Autumn and Winter. Stat 25100 may be taken either before or after Stat 24400-24500.

Students with the high school background may also access the methods classes Stat 22400, 22600, or 22200 early in their undergraduate studies. These classes may be taken in any order. They are methods classes focusing on particular topics. Stat 22400 (Autumn) focuses on linear regression. Stat 22600 (Winter) discusses qualitative/categorical data and models for their analysis. Stat 22200 (Spring) is experimental design. The prerequisite for these courses is Stat 22000, so they could be taken directly after AP statistics.  The Department recommends, however, that you get some exposure to college classes at the University of Chicago first.   These classes could be in the Mathematics Department or in a College Core sequence.  Please discuss options with the Department advisor.

A further option in the Spring is Stat 26700: History of Statistics. After AP statistics in high school, but before taking Stat 26700, it is recommended to take either Stat 23400, 24400-24500, or 25100, or one or more of Stat 22400, 22600, and 22200. If you have encountered statistical methods in subject area classes (economics, psychology, biology, etc.), then you will have additional perspective to bring to the History of Statistics class (or to basically any statistics class).

Further information on courses is available in the document on Courses and in the descriptions of the undergraduate degree and Master's degree pages (see the Department home page for links).