Overview
The Department of Mathematical Sciences offers M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in
- Mathematics
- Statistics
- Mathematics Education
The department provides unique opportunities for innovative instruction and cooperative research. With approximately 30 Ph.D. faculty and 70 graduate students, the department is large enough to attract and retain the most capable faculty, but small enough to allow faculty and graduate students an intimate atmosphere for the easy exchange of ideas.
The department offers programs of study in both pure and applied mathematics. Programs of study focus on mathematics which provides appropriate training for employment in academia, industry, or government. Pure areas of emphasis include dynamical systems, topology, complex analysis and global analysis. Applied areas of emphasis include mathematical biology, computational mathematics, inverse and ill-posed problems, numerical analysis, and sensitivity theory. Interdisciplinary research opportunities in biological, engineering and physical applications are encouraged in the applied program component.
The graduate programs in statistics strike a balance between statistical theory and methods. Graduates are prepared for employment as consultants, researchers and teachers. Areas of emphasis include mathematical statistics, probability, applied probability, linear models, multivariate analysis, time series, spatial analysis, sampling, experimental design, biostatistics, response surface methodology, and statistical modeling. Our statistics programs provide experience in practical problem solving and computational statistics; this experience is gained, in part, through a consulting seminar program in which all graduate students participate. Programs are individually tailored and may emphasize applications to other disciplines such as biology, medicine, engineering, and the social sciences.
The mathematics education faculty in the department characterizes its work as "applied mathematics education," oriented toward the preparation and professional development of mathematics teachers and the development of effective school mathematics curriculum. The faculty actively pursues grants to fund research and creative activity focused on delivering effective professional development and developing curriculum materials for K-12 mathematics teachers. Areas of emphasis include teacher preparation, coaching, and mentoring in-service teachers, on-line learning among practicing teachers, technology-supported classroom instruction, problem-based learning, and curriculum development for K-12 mathematics. Graduate students design research projects in alignment with faculty interests and current projects. Students in the masters degree option will engage in school-based action research, while the doctoral program includes both qualitative and quantitative experimental research.
Updated: 08/01/2011 |
