6.5. DATA/MATH 363 Computing prerequisites

Math/SDS Majors and Minors → Curriculum Changes → DATA/MATH 363 Computing prerequisites

Course requisite and major curriculum updates

Data Science requires skills in computation, particularly Python and SQL. For majors in Statistics & Data Science, the courses listed below are required as of 2022. In addition, they have been added as pre- or co-requisites for MATH/DATA 363.

For students who plan to take 363 as part of a math or SDS minor, or another major, there are some online alternatives to the listed the University of Arizona courses. However, we still encourage all students interested in data science to take the for-credit courses for a more complete background in computing skills for data science. The online alternatives do not provide college credit; they will only serve as background for the MATH/DATA 363 course.

Python Programming

For majors in Statistics & Data Science or in the new Data Science major, course credit for Python programming is required. Python is a pre-requisite to DATA/MATH 363. Most students will take either CSC 110 or ISTA 130; these two courses are essentially interchangeable, so we advise students to consult the schedule of classes to determine which class will be a better fit for your schedule in a given semester. Additional U of A courses that we can accept, but may need to be substituted in your advisement report:

• CSC 120
• CSC 250 (if available)
• ECE 175 (or the new ECE 101) PLUS one of the following Python courses (the ECE course provides greater depth of programming knowledge to supplement these lighter Python courses):
  • BE 205 or
  • CHEE 205 or
  • AME 209

Some of the above may not automatically allow students to enroll in 363 or fulfill major/minor requirements. Email the Math Center if you need assistance.

We also accept MIS 301 for the Python requirement, but this class is only available to MIS majors in Eller so it will not be added to the official requirements. Students may email the Math Center if they have taken this course for access to enroll in 363.

For some students who do not need course credit, an online non-credit course may be more convenient. The following courses have been approved for the Python portion of the DATA/MATH 363 enrollment requirement; email the Math Center with proof of completion if you have finished one of them, or if you would like to inquire about a different course:

• From Codecademy
  • Learn Python 2
  • Learn Python 3
  • Python for Programmers
• From DataCamp
  • Intermediate Python
• From LinkedIn Learning
  • Python Essential Training (Course ID: 0000016001)
• From Udemy
  • 100 Days of Code: The Complete Python Pro Bootcamp for 2023

Data Management/SQL

For majors in Statistics & Data Science or in the new Data Science major, course credit for SQL/Databases is required. SQL/Databases is a co-requisite to DATA/MATH 363 (it may be taken prior to or concurrent with 363). Most students will take ISTA 322 for this purpose; it is available to our students and requires only an introductory programming course (e.g. ISTA 130 or CSC 110) as prerequisite.

The skills learned in this course will be useful to students as they work on their data projects in DATA/MATH 363 as well as in later courses.

Other courses that we can accept:

• CSC 460 also works, but has additional upper-division CS courses as prerequisites, so is less accessible.
• We have also approved GIST 470 and MIS 331 - also courses that are likely to only be taken by majors in that field.

Students who have taken the CSC, GIST, or MIS course will need to notify us so we can update your registration access. If you find other courses that you think may be similar, please let us know. 

Are there other options to fulfill this requirement besides ISTA 322? As noted above, for majors in Statistics & Data Science or in the new Data Science major, a formal for-credit course is required.

For some students who do not need course credit, an online non-credit course may be more convenient. The following courses have been approved (email the Math Center with proof of completion if you have finished one of them, or if you would like to inquire about a different course):

• From Codecademy
  • Learn SQL
• Students who have participated in the Coding for Data track of the Global Tech Experience might have experience that can be used to fulfill this co-requisite; please send the Math Center copies of your syllabi from the courses completed so we can verify this for you. (These students still need to take a course as listed above to meet the Python programming requirement.)

For Statistics & Data Science majors in the 2022 catalog or earlier catalog requirements who have selected BS for their degree, we can replace 3 units of Application Course work with ISTA 322. Please let us know when you are enrolled in ISTA 322 so we can make this adjustment for you. (email math-mathcenter@arizona.edu and ask us to substitute ISTA 322 for an application course).