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MS in Mathematics

This program is designed for the student who wants to obtain a general education in mathematics at the Master’s level. This program is also an appropriate preparation for our Ph.D. program in mathematics. The recommended mathematical preparatory coursework for this program includes junior/senior level coursework in advanced calculus, abstract algebra and linear algebra.

Degree Requirements:

General Requirements

  • A minimum of 35 credit hours of course work.
  • Math courses at the 300 level and below will not be counted towards the 35 hour requirement.
  • A minimum of 24 credit hours taken on campus.
  • At most 6 of the 35 credit hours may be taken outside mathematics.
  • Course work outside the department must be at the 300 level or above. Outside courses must be approved in advance by the graduate student’s advisor and have some relevance to the student’s mathematical program.
  • A minimum of 18 credit hours of coursework in mathematics of 3+ credits each, at the 500+ level (excluding MATH 530, 695, 699, 798, 799 and  MATH 592.001, 592.002, 592.003  and  MATH 584A, 584B).
  • The Seminar requirement must be satisfied. A maximum of 2 credits may be counted toward the 35 credit hour degree requirement.
  • At most 1 hour of MATH 584A or 584B (Supervised College Teaching) may be counted towards the 35 credit hour requirement

 

Course Requirements

The program must include three out of the seven courses:

    • MATH 501
    • MATH 517
    • MATH 545
    • MATH 550
    • MATH 560
    • MATH 566
    • MATH 574

The program requires two sequences.  The first sequence must be selected from the following options. The second sequence may be selected from the following options or may consist of two mathematics courses (not independent studies) approved by the student’s advisor.

    • MATH 501-502
    • MATH 510-520
    • MATH 517-617
    • MATH 517-519
    • MATH 545-546
    • MATH 550-652
    • MATH 540-640
    • MATH 560-561
    • MATH 566-567
    • MATH 570-571
    • MATH 574-674

Note: if a sequence is not offered due to enrollment restrictions then students must select amongst the available sequences in any given year.)

The program must include at least one additional course selected from an area of mathematics, as approved by the student’s advisor, not represented in the student’s choices used to fulfill the requirements above.

Final Project and Examination

A final oral examination is required for all MS degrees. The Examination is conducted by the Advisory Committee and is open to faculty and graduate students in the Department as well as other interested parties. The student must complete one of the following options for the MS.

  • Thesis (plan A): The student completes a thesis that is not purely expository but reflects an element of originality on the part of the student.  The student’s program of study must contain a least 6 but not more than 9 credit hours of thesis research (MATH 699).
    • All thesis will be submitted electronically through ProQuest.  Instruction for submitting a thesis are detailed on the Graduate School’s website and can be found here.
    • The format of the thesis must strictly adhere to the requirements of the Graduate School. A requirements checklist, formatting guide and sample pages are available on the Graduate School website and can be found here.
    • The thesis must be submitted to the Graduate School by published deadlines.
  • Paper (plan B): The student writes an expository paper under the direction of the advisor. This paper must be approved by the advisor and the committee. The student’s program of study must contain 3 credit hours of thesis research (MATH 699).  The Expository Paper will not be submitted to the graduate school.

The Graduate Coordinator will assist with room scheduling once the date and time for the defense have been established with your committee.

The student’s committee must have adequate time to review the thesis or paper before the final examination.  Therefore, the committee must have the thesis or paper at least two weeks (including two weekends) before the final examination which meets the following standards:

  • The Paper or Thesis must be in final form
  • The Print is letter quality, and a uniform style has been used throughout.
  • Figures, printouts, etc. are clear and easy to read.
  • Text is double-spaced and printed on only one side of the paper.

Results of the final oral examination will be reported on the GS24.  Voting is limited to the members of the student’s committee, and a majority vote is necessary to pass the examination. A tie vote is interpreted as failure to pass the examination. All committee members must vote to either Pass or Fail the student; there is no option to withhold a signature.  Committee members who are not academic faculty do not have a vote on the final examination.

If significant revisions to the thesis or expository paper are required by the committee after the final oral examination is complete, a reasonable amount of time must be given for committee members to re-review the thesis once the revisions have been made.

A candidate who fails the final examination may be reexamined once and, for the reexamination, may be required to complete further work. The reexamination must be held not later than 12 months after the first examination. The examination must not be held earlier than two months after the first examination unless the student agrees to a shorter time period. Failure to pass the second exam results in dismissal from the Graduate School.