A "secondary" Master's student is one who is obtaining a Master's or Ph.D. in another program while pursuing a Master's degree in Statistics or Data Science. In the view of the Graduate School, the other department is a student's "primary" program, while Statistics or Data Science is the student's "secondary" program. Secondary Master's students have a luxury that primary students in Statistics or Data Science do not - such students may begin taking courses in order to see if the program fits into their plans without ever applying to become an official student of the program. To officially apply for a secondary master's degree, an applicant should go to grad.uga.edu and apply. When applying for a secondary degree, select the "add on an additional graduate program" option. The application fee will be only $25 because the applicant is already a UGA graduate student. Similarly, there will be no further GRE or TOEFL requirements MS-2 in Statistics The requirements for a secondary MS in Statistics are the same as for the Statistics MS degree (MS Statistics Guidelines). Typically, a secondary Master's student will not apply to become an official student of Statistics until after completing the core courses. However, before taking the core courses, a potential MS-2 student should contact the Graduate Coordinator for Admissions in order to plan properly. If the student wishes to earn the Master's under the Exam Option, then s/he may wait further until after passing the Master's Qualifying Examination (QEM) to apply to Statistics. In that case, letters of recommendation are not a necessary part of the application process. If the student wishes to earn a Master's degree under the Thesis Option, then letters of recommendation are required. One of these letters should be written by the faculty member who will be the thesis advisor. MS-2 in Data Science The requirements for a secondary MS in Data Science are the same as for the Data Science MS degree (MS Data Science Guidelines). Typically, a secondary Master's student will not apply to become an official Data Science student until after completing the core courses. However, before taking the core courses, a potential MS-2 student should contact the Graduate Coordinator for Admissions in order to plan properly, as there are many hidden prerequisites in the Data Science program.
