Statistics and Operational Research MSc

This programme will help you develop professionally in the theory and practice of statistics and operational research (OR), providing the foundations for a successful career.

This programme will prepare you for work in areas such as the medical and health industry, government, the financial sector and any other area where modern statistical tools and OR techniques are used. You will also develop the wider skills required for solving problems, working in teams and time management.

You will be able to identify appropriate statistical or operational techniques, which can be applied to practical problems, and will acquire extensive skills in modelling using the packages R for Statistics and Arena for simulation.

Links with industry

The School of Mathematics has connections with a wide number of industrial partners, organisations, charities and government departments.

As an MSc student in the School you will have opportunities to engage with these external organisations through regular employability events, careers workshops, and our annual analytics challenge (whose recent partners have included Edinburgh Airport and the Data and Marketing Association). There is also the opportunity to undertake a dissertation project with an external partner.

Recent partners for industry-based dissertations in the Statistics and Operational Research MSc include:

• Wood Mackenzie
• Nextail
• Arup

Accreditation

This MSc is accredited by the Royal Statistical Society (RSS). Thus, this programme is recognised by RSS for the purpose of eligibility for the professional award of Graduate Statistician. The accreditation is based on the general depth, breadth, quality and foundation of the programme and its statistical content.

These entry requirements are for the 2025/26 academic year and requirements for future academic years may differ. Entry requirements for the 2026/27 academic year will be published on 1 Oct 2025.

A UK 2:1 degree, or its international equivalent, in a numerate discipline such as mathematics, engineering, computer science, physical or biological sciences, economics or business.

Your degree must have included substantial mathematics content, including calculus (including calculus of several variables), linear algebra, probability, statistics and statistical theory. Detailed information is available from the School of Mathematics website.

You can increase your chances of a successful application by exceeding the minimum programme requirements.

Students from China

This degree is Band B.

• Postgraduate entry requirements for students from China

International qualifications

Check whether your international qualifications meet our general entry requirements:

• Entry requirements by country

English language requirements

Regardless of your nationality or country of residence, you must demonstrate a level of English language competency which will enable you to succeed in your studies.

English language tests

We accept the following English language qualifications at the grades specified:

• IELTS Academic: total 6.5 with at least 6.0 in each component. We do not accept IELTS One Skill Retake to meet our English language requirements.
• TOEFL-iBT (including Home Edition): total 92 with at least 20 in each component. We do not accept TOEFL MyBest Score to meet our English language requirements.
• C1 Advanced (CAE) / C2 Proficiency (CPE): total 176 with at least 169 in each component.
• Trinity ISE: ISE II with distinctions in all four components.
• PTE Academic: total 65 with at least 59 in each component. We do not accept PTE Academic Online.
• Oxford ELLT: 7 overall with at least 6 in each component.

Unless you are a national of a majority English speaking country, your English language qualification must be no more than three and a half years old from the start of the month in which the programme you are applying to study begins. If you are using an IELTS, PTE Academic, TOEFL, Trinity ISE, or Oxford ELLT test, it must be no more than two years old on the first of the month in which the programme begins, regardless of your nationality. (Revised 14 January 2025 to include Oxford ELLT.)

Degrees taught and assessed in English

We also accept an undergraduate or postgraduate degree that has been taught and assessed in English in a majority English speaking country, as defined by UK Visas and Immigration:

• UKVI list of majority English speaking countries

We also accept a degree that has been taught and assessed in English from a university on our list of approved universities in non-majority English speaking countries (non-MESC).

• Approved universities in non-MESC

If you are not a national of a majority English speaking country, then your degree must be no more than five years old at the beginning of your programme of study.

Find out more about our language requirements:

• English language requirements

This programme is ideal for students who wish to apply their statistics and operational research knowledge within a wide range of sectors including the medical and health sector, government and finance. The advanced problem-solving skills you will develop will be highly prized by many employers.

In addition to entering employment, some of our graduates also choose to progress to an academic career by studying for a PhD in statistics. Students have gone on to study their PhDs at highly-ranked universities including Oxford and Edinburgh.