• introduction
• outcomes for a graduate
• sources of funding
• courses, exams, and thesis or project
• qualifications for admission
• program requirements
• electives
• year-to-year course timing
• contact graduate coordinator
  
• info on comprehensive exams
  
• publications by graduate students in the program

Introduction

The Master of Science in Mathematics program was established at UAF in 1961.  Students in the program can take courses with either a pure or an applied mathematical emphasis.  Students complete coursework in advanced mathematics. Students take a comprehensive examination.  Students are required to complete a project or thesis developed in consultation with the student's graduate advisor and graduate advisory commitee.  Projects and theses have been done in the areas of partial differential equations, numerical analysis,  dynamical systems, and Lie groups.  Many projects and theses have led to publications in pure and applied mathematics journals. Most students complete the program in two years plus associated summers.  Graduates of this program have gone on to Ph.D. programs in Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, and other fields, and into teaching positions at the two-year college level.

The catalog description of the program is Graduate Program -- M.S. Degree.

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Outcomes for the Successful Graduate

Qualifications of Graduates:  Graduates of the program will be qualified to do the following:

• Advanced research in mathematics or a closely related field.
• Continue on to Ph.D. work in mathematics, applied mathematics, or statistics.
• Teach courses in mathematics or subjects with high mathematical content (e.g. introductory statistics) at the post-secondary (two-year college) level.
• Work in industry in applications of mathematics.
  

Publications: See separate page for recent publications by graduate students.

Teaching experience:  The majority of recent MS graduates have had the opportunity to teach their own courses at the pre-calculus or calculus level.   Almost all gain experience tutoring in sections of calculus classes or in the Math Lab.

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Sources of Funding

The Department of Mathematics and Statistics offers Teaching Assistant positions, consisting of a 9-month stipend and payment of tuition for up to 10 credits (e.g. three courses) per semester. The duties of a Teaching Assistant might include (i) working with calculus students on homework problems in a small section, (ii) tutoring in the Math Lab, and/or (iii) teaching (lecturing for) a pre-calculus course.  See also the Teaching Assistant Handbook put out by the Graduate School.

A limited number of Research Fellowships or Assistantships may also be available through grant money procured by faculty inside and outside of the department.  Also see the financial aid and funding page at the Graduate School. 

Summer Sessions of UAF routinely hires MS Mathematics students to teach mathematics in the summer, including at the calculus level.  Interested students should speak to the Chair of DMS, who proposes teaching assignments to Summer Sessions.

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Courses, Exams, and Thesis or Project

The program is built around four 600-level mathematics core courses.  Further electives are expected, possibly including courses outside of  the department in applied areas.  While most students will complete the program in two years, students who matriculate with deficiencies--typically one or two 400-level courses--may require an extra semester or two to complete the program. 

The written comprehensive examination covers the content of three courses chosen by the student and his/her committee, but including at least two core courses. It is usually taken in the Spring semester of the second year of the program.

The program must be taken with a thesis or project.  A thesis is more formal and involves satisfying UAF's thesis format requirements.  The graduate school has a LaTeX package to help with this. An oral defense/presentation is required for both the thesis and the project.  This will usually be done shortly before graduation in the Spring of the student's second year.  Theses are archived by the library, but PDF final forms are desired for both theses and projects.

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Qualifications for Admission

To be admitted to the program, an applicant must complete the general UAF procedures for admission into a graduate program.   and complete and/or submit the following:

1. Although GRE scores are not required for admission for students with a 3.0 undergraduate grade point average or better, we recommend that students complete and submit GRE general and subject exam scores to provide additional information for admission and funding decisions.
   
2. Students are required to take the GRE Mathematics Subject exam by the end of their first year of study if they have not done so in the admission process.  This is intended as an assessment tool for the graduate program.  The Department will pay (reimburse) current students for this exam. Failure to complete the GRE test during the first year will result in a loss of department funding, including teaching assistantships.
   
3. Foreign applicants for whom English is a second languare will need to complete and submit a TOEFL score of at least 550 (paper score), 80 (internet score), or 213 (computer score).  Applicants seeking a teaching assistanceship will need a (paper) score of at least 600. The department gives preference to foreign appicants who also submit results of the Test of Spoken English (TSE); *
4. Three letters of recommendation concerning the applicants' educational background;
5. Complete transcripts for all college level coursework;
6. Applicants must have completed at least a bachelors degree in mathematics or a closely related field from an accredited institution including the completion of the following courses or their equivalent with a grade of B or better: **

• A course in advanced calculus or introductory analysis (e.g. Math 401);
• A course in abstract algebra (e.g. Math 405);
• A course in linear algebra (e.g. Math 314);

* - Exceptions MAY be made by the graduate admissions committee.
** - Exceptions to these requirements MAY be made by the graduate admissions committee.  Students who are admitted with deficiencies will be asked to remedy these deficiencies as soon as possible after their arrival on campus.
 

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Program Requirements

Graduate Committee:  The applicant must select a graduate advisory committee including at least three faculty members, at least two of which are mathematics faculty, and have the commitment of one of the mathematics faculty to chair or co-chair the committee.  The inclusion of a faculty member from another discipline is encouraged for those students working on a thesis/project in an applied area.  Students will need to form a (provisional) graduate committee by the end of their first semester.  The graduate advisory committee can decide, in accordance with university policy, whether specific transfer graduate courses may be allowed as part of the program (at most 9 credits).  The student and his/her committee should complete the Appointment/Change of Graduate Committee Form.

Graduate Study Plan:  One of the first actions of the student and his/her graduate committee is to meet with the student to create a Graduate Study Plan.  Among other things, the Graduate Study Plan lists the courses the student will be taking to complete their Master's degree.

University Requirements:  The student must satisfy the general university requirements, in particular, complete a minimum of 30 semester credits of which at least 24 credits must be at the 600 level, including those earned for thesis (maximum of 12 credits) or projects (maximum of 6 credits).  At least 21 of these credits must be taken in Mathematics.

Annual Report:  Each year before May 15 the student and his/her committee should complete an Annual Report.  This report provides an opportunity to confirm that the student is making satisfactory progress toward the degree, or to flag any issues or difficulties that have arisen.

Advancement to Candidacy:  Once the student and committee have achieved finally agreement upon courses, topics on the comprehensive exam, and project/thesis title, an Advancement to Candidacy form must be submitted to the Graduate School  This form will be checked upon application for graduation, and the courses the student has actually taken must match the form.  Thus it should not be submitted prematurely.  On the other hand, it must be completed by the beginning of the last semester in the program.

Written Comprehensive Examination:  See the separate page on the MS comprehensive examination.

Regarding Grades for Graduate Students:  Grades of A,B,C,D,F are possible in graduate courses, and correspond to numbers 4.0,3.0,2.0,1.0,0.0, respectively. 
     The UAF catalog says three things about grades for graduate students. First, graduate assistantships (both teaching and research) are withdrawn after a warning:
Next, the Advancement to Candidacy form must show courses which represent a GPA of 3.0:
Finally, as a requirement of maintaining "Good Standing" as a graduate student,
Failure to meet one of these standards can, potentially, lead to dismissal; see pages 72-73 of the '05-'06 catalog.
     In summary, graduate students must maintain a 3.0 GPA to stay out of trouble.

Departmental Requirements:  In addition to the university requirements, the M.S. Mathematics program requires the following:

I. Complete the Core Mathematics Courses:
Math 631	Modern Algebra I	4 credits
Math 641	Real Analysis	4 credits
Math 645	Complex Analysis	4 credits
Math 651	Topology	4 credits
	16 credit subtotal

 

II. Complete at least 8 additional credits of approved elective courses in Mathematics or a closely related field; at most 6 credits can be at the 400 level; see below for suggestions

8+ credit subtotal

 

III. Complete an approved Project or Thesis
Math 698	Research (on Project)	6 credits
Math 699	Thesis	6-12 credits
	6-12 credit subtotal

= at least 30 CREDITS TOTAL

(includes at least 24 credits at the 600 level)

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Electives/Suggestions  -The following are common electives for MS students.  These lists are neither exclusive nor exhaustive.

Possible electives for a student in a pre-Ph.D. program:

Math 412 Differential Geometry
Math 608 Partial Differential Equations
Math 630 Advanced Linear Algebra
Math 632 Modern Algebra II
Math 655 Algebraic Topology
Math 663 Applied Combinatorics and Graph Theory
Stat 651 Statistical Theory I

Possible electives for a student in a pre-Ph.D. program in analysis/differential equations or applied mathematics:

Math 608 Partial Differential Equations
Math 611 Mathematical Physics I
Math 612 Mathematical Physics II
Math 630 Advanced Linear Algebra
Math 615 Applied Numerical Analysis
Math 660 Advanced Mathematical Modelling
Math 661 Optimization
Math 663 Applied Combinatorics and Graph Theory
Stat 651 Statistical Theory I

Possible electives for students planning to teach mathematics at the post-secondary (two-year college) level:

Math 460 Mathematical Modelling
Stat 461 Applied Multivariate Statistics
Math 630 Advanced Linear Algebra
Math 660 Advanced Mathematical Modelling
Math 661 Optimization
Math 663 Applied Combinatorics and Graph Theory
Stat 651 Statistical Theory I
Stat 652 Statistical Theory II

The Department routinely offers graduate seminars (Math 692) or special topics courses (Math 693) in topics of common interest to particular faculty and students.  Recent seminars have covered random walks, differential forms, and the finite element method.  Recent special topics courses include control and inverse problems in PDEs.

It is also possible for students to arrange independent study courses (Math 697) with willing faculty.

As UAF has strong graduate programs in Physics, Geology and Geophysics, Engineering, Biology and Wildlife, and other areas. There are many available graduate-level applications courses including some with significant mathematical content. Also note the links at the bottom of this document for more information.

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3-YEAR COURSE SCHEDULE FOR GRADUATE MATHEMATICS COURSES TENTATIVE! (Including undergraduate courses of interest to some graduate students)
COURSE	Title	Odd  Yr Fall (e.g. F 2005)	Even Yr Spring (e.g. S 2006)	Even Yr Fall (e.g. F 2006)	Odd Yr Spring (e.g. S 2007)
Math 308	Abstract Algebra		X		X
Math 401	Advanced Calculus I	X		X
Math 402	Advanced Calculus II		ADW		ADW
Math 404	Topology			X
Math 412	Differential Geometry				X
Math 421	Applied Analysis	X		X
Math 422	Introduction to Complex Analysis		X		X
Math 600	Teaching Seminar	X		X
Math 608	Partial Differential Equations
Math 611	Mathematical Physics I	X		X
Math 612	Mathematical Physics II		X		X
Math 615	Applied Numerical Analysis				X
Math 631	Modern Algebra I			X
Math 632	Modern Algebra II
Math 641	Real Analysis	X
Math 645	Complex Analysis		X
Math 651	Topology				X
Math 655	Algebraic Topology
Math 661	Optimization		ADW		ADW
Math 663	Appl. Comb. and Graph Theory		X
Stat 651	Statistical Theory I	X		X
Stat 652	Statistical Theory II				X

Notes:  1) ADW = As Demand Warrants
           2) Math 611 and Math 612 are cross-listed as Phys 611 and Phys 612
           3) Math 661 is cross-listed as CS 661.

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Contact / Graduate Coordinator

Ed Bueler
Associate Professor of Mathematics (Applied)
Dept of Mathematics and Statistics
University of Alaska
Fairbanks, AK 99775-6660
(907) 474-7693
Fax: (907)-474-5394
elbueler@alaska.edu

See the separate Faculty & Staff Directory.