PhD in Statistics and Computer Science
Statistics curriculum coordinator
Prof. Antonio Lijoi
Computer Science curriculum coordinator
Prof. Laura Sanità
PhD Administrative Assistant
Angela Baldassarre
The 4-year PhD in Statistics and Computer Science is a high profile and rigorous doctoral program that develops strong mathematical, statistical, computational and programming backgrounds. It is a joint program by the Departments of Decision Sciences and of Computing Sciences and arises as an expansion of the PhD in Statistics, which has been established in 2001 and has stood out as a success story in terms of both placement and scientific achievements of its graduates.
The cross-disciplinary nature of our program is essential for gaining first-class research skills. Indeed, the rise of Machine Learning and Data Science is providing undisputed evidence that the ideal expertise for achieving new exciting advances in these areas lies at the boundaries of Statistics and Computer Science. The ability of developing both novel statistical methodologies and highly scalable computational algorithms has become crucial, due to the increasing availability of large and complex datasets.
The program is tailored to exceptionally talented and motivated students who wish to stand out either as statisticians having also a deep knowledge of computing, algorithms and theoretical computer science or as computer scientists with a strong training in probabilistic and statistical modeling and applications. This merging of skills is a distinctive feature of modern data scientists working on cutting-edge research topics within academic institutions, research organizations and industry.
Starting from the a.y. 2024-25, the program is structured in two curricula: Statistics and Computer Science.
The first year coursework features common core courses shared by the two curricula and curriculum specific courses: they provide a common theoretical and methodological background, which is essential for carrying out cutting-edge research.
The study plans of the two curricula differ in the second year. The curriculum in Statistics features courses that will be focusing on frontier research topics, while the curriculum in Computer Science includes reading groups on advanced topics in Computer Science. The third and fourth year are devoted to the doctoral thesis for both curricula.
The Faculty includes internationally acknowledged top researchers in Statistics, Computer Science and Machine Learning. The program also benefits from contributions of authoritative visiting professors who deliver short monographic courses.
By following the links in the Highlights section of this page, or in the menu bar on the top-right of the page, you will be able to access full information on the program.
Find out more on how to apply and the admissions process.
