Looking for a gentler semester? Start with courses where students have earned higher grades.
Highest historical GPA first. At least 100 letter grades over the five years through the selected term. Grades reflect past outcomes, not workload or a guaranteed result.
Historical grades cover up to five years through the selected term. Only courses with at least 100 letter grades are ranked.
Introduction to probability and mathematical statistics covering distributions, moments, and estimation.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
The workload includes ten homeworks, one midterm, and one final, with exams described as easy if students engage with the provided materials.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Introduction to mathematical statistical inference, focusing on likelihood, estimation, and hypothesis testing.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
The course is described as difficult and intense, with long homeworks, high-stakes exams, and a significant gap between lecture content and test material.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Introduction to stochastic processes covering Markov chains, point processes, and renewal theory with applications to queueing and branching models.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Seppalainen assigns challenging homework that is harder than exams, while Valko uses a grading scheme based on multiple weighted components rather than heavy testing.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Introduction to time series analysis covering stationarity, AR/MA models, and forecasting applications.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Historical reviews of Panduan An: Reviewers describe the course as difficult, with homework questions being very hard and a high drop rate before the midterm. The lecture pace is often too fast to take notes, and prereqs do not adequately prepare students for the workload.
historical GPA · grades
Fall 2022–Fall 2025Introduction to mathematical statistics covering probability, distributions, the central limit theorem, and estimation.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Historical reviews of Amy Beyler, Derek Bean, Yaoguo Xie: Workload and difficulty vary significantly by instructor. Some report high-quality materials and fair tests, while others describe difficult exams and a need for extensive self-study to gain solid knowledge.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Introduction to combinatorics covering enumeration, generating functions, graph theory, and matching problems.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
The course is dense and challenging. Homework is feasible but requires reading the textbook, as lectures may not fully explain concepts. Exams often draw directly from the book and previous tests.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Introduction to the theory of probability covering axioms, distributions, and limit theorems
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Historical reviews of Benedek Valko, Erik Bates: Workload varies by instructor; one review cites an extremely challenging final, while another notes fair homework and adjusted exam weights to reward improvement.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Introduces linear optimization problems, emphasizing formal proofs, the simplex method, duality theory, and theorems of the alternatives.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
The course is considered very difficult, with hard assignments that require significant study time, though group work is permitted. Exams are reported as easier than homework, although one student found the final exam unexpectedly difficult despite its stated format.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026STAT 340 teaches data exploration, modeling, and analysis using R, covering probability, simulation, hypothesis testing, Bayesian inference, regression, and machine learning techniques.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Reviewers consistently report that exams are extremely difficult, often unrelated to lectures or homework, with low averages and insufficient time for paper-based tests.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Introduction to statistics for science and engineering covering descriptive statistics, probability, hypothesis testing, linear regression, and ANOVA using R.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Homework is time-consuming, taking five to six hours per set, and exams are challenging with a time crunch. Students must spend significant time understanding homework to prepare for tests that may differ from practice problems.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026STAT 371 introduces applied statistical practice for the life sciences using R, covering EDA, inference, ANOVA, and regression.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Historical reviews indicate varied workloads. John Davis reported short homework, whereas Cecile Ane assigned a heavy group project and required extra practice. Vivak Patel's course was noted as highly difficult.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026Introduction to statistical methods covering distributions, inference, regression, and experimental design.
Offering recorded · Fall 2026
Workload is described as manageable with straightforward exams, though success requires consistent effort and engagement with the material.
historical GPA · grades
Spring 2022–Spring 2026