Admissions

The BSDS program has prerequisites of the following two courses, which must be completed or in progress at the time of application:

• DS 1001: Foundations of Data Science (3 credits)
• DS 1002: Programming for Data Science (3 credits)*

Both courses are offered in the fall and spring semesters, can be taken in any order, do not have prerequisites, and may be taken concurrently. Prerequisite courses must be taken for a grade and not CR/NC. The Undergraduate Record represents the official repository for academic program requirements.  

* Refer to our FAQs for alternatives to DS 1002. 

The application requires the following materials to be submitted by the deadline:

• Completed application, including entering your Student Information System (SIS) credentials to fill your information and UVA transcript. Late applications will not be accepted under any circumstances.
• Upload a resume, which includes your academic, work, or extracurricular experience since you graduated from high school. We hope your resume will demonstrate your involvement on-Grounds, such as clubs and activities, or internships or paid jobs, leadership, service, family responsibilities, civic engagement, military experience, gap year activities, coding or research projects you’re proud of, and any other accomplishments you’d like to share. Limit your resume to one page. We strongly encourage applicants to refer to UVA Career Center’s resume resources.
• Provide one recommender who can comment on your qualifications for the BSDS program. The form should be completed by a supervisor, advisor, mentor, or instructor (including teaching assistants). Note that the recommender may not be a faculty member, staff, or student affiliated with the School of Data Science, including your professor for DS 1001 or DS 1002. (Note: You will find additional instructions regarding the recommendation in your application.)

For more information about the application process, refer to the FAQs page.

Short Answer Questions

We ask for responses to the following questions to learn more about you, your goals, and your preparedness for the program. There is no "right" answer - just be yourself. 

• Required: Excellence in data science requires collaboration; students and faculty succeed by working together and relying on one another. What about your background, perspective, or life experiences will enable you to contribute to our collaborative community? (250 words or fewer)
• Required: The B.S. in Data Science will equip you to tackle real-world problems and work at the cutting edge of an evolving discipline. Describe a data-related experience that deepened your interest in pursing the data science major. (250 words or fewer)
• Optional: Use this space to provide insight and/or context regarding aspects of your application not otherwise addressed in this application, including, but not limited to, aberrant grades, gaps in your academic record or resume, or other extenuating circumstances. (250 words or fewer)

First-year students apply to the major in their second semester and will know their admission decision in the summer.

• Application Opens: Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026
• Application Deadline: Thursday, April 30, 2026 at 12 p.m. ET
• Recommendations Due: Thursday, May 7, 2026 at 12 p.m. ET
• Admission Decisions Released: Friday, June 12, 2026
• Deadline to Respond to Offer: Friday, June 19, 2026
• Waitlist Closes: Aug. 1, 2026

Enrolling students should refer to the FAQs for next steps. 

Due to the three-year structure of the BSDS program, only first-year students may apply. Most students transfer from the College of Arts and Sciences, though students may apply for transfer from any other school of enrollment, such as Engineering.

Second-, third-, and fourth-year students, as well as transfer students, may pursue the undergraduate Minor in Data Science and/or consider one of our graduate programs.