The University of Alaska Fairbanks is reputed for its strength in the natural sciences, especially in those areas touching on the arctic environment. Many institutes and departments on campus use mathematics in their research, among them the Institute of Arctic Biology, the Institute of Marine Sciences, the Geophysical Institute, the Department of Biology and Wildlife and the Fisheries Division.

The Master of Science in Mathematics program was established by the Department of Mathematical Sciences in 1961.  Students in the program can take courses with either a pure or an applied mathematical emphasis.  Students will also be required to complete a project or thesis developed in consultation with the student's graduate advisor and graduate advisory commitee.

Qualifications of Graduates

• Advanced research in mathematics or a closely related field.
• Continue on to Ph.D. work in mathematics.
• Teach courses in mathematics or subjects with high mathematical content at the post-secondary level.

The Program

Sources of Funding.

Thesis/Project Options and Examinations

All students in the master's degree program must pass the following examinations:

1. A written comprehensive examination.  This will usually be taken in the Spring of the student's second year.
2. An oral defense/presentation of their thesis/project.  This will usually be done shortly before graduation in the Spring of the student's second year.

Student Admission Qualifications

1. We recommend that students complete and submit the GRE general and subject exam.  Students will be required to take the GRE by the end of their first year of study.
2. Foreign applicants for whom English is a second languare will need to complete and submit a TOEFL score of at least 550 (paper 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 sho also submit results of the Test of Spoken English (TSE); **
3. Three letters of recommendation concerning the applicants' educational background;
4. Complete transcripts for all college level coursework;
5. 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 (Math 401);
• A course in abstract algebra (Math 308);
• A course in linear algebra (Math 314);

Program Requirements:

Graduate Committee:  The applicant must select a graduate advisory committee consisting including at least three faculty members, at least half of which are mathematics faculty, and have the commitment of one of the mathematics faculty to 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 student's graduate committee will then meet with the student to creat 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.

The graduate advisory committee can also decide, in accordance with university policy, whether specific transfer graduate courses may be allowed as part of the program (at most 9 credits).

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.

Departmental Requirementts:  In addition to the university requirements, the Master's in Mathematics program requires the following:
 
 

Sample Programs  -The following course schedules assume that the student matriculates in the Fall of 2001 and are suggestions only.  The student, in collaboration with the student's graduate committee will develop a detailed graduate study plan.
 
 

As UAF has strong graduate programs in Fisheries, Marine Science, Wildlife, Biology, Geophysics, and other areas. There are many available graduate-level applications courses. Please check out the links at the bottom of this document for more information.
 

Mathematics Course Descriptions

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.

Faculty

The Mathematics Facully in the Department of Mathematical Sciences are:

• Ed Bueler, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, http://www.uafcs.alaska.edu/~bueler
• Jenna Caldwell, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, http://www.uafcs.alaska.edu/~caldwell
• Jill Faudree, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, http://www.uafcs.alaska.edu/~faudree
• Ron Gatterdam, Ph.D. Professor.
• John Gimbel, Ph.D. Professor.
• Zorana Lazarevic, Ph.D. Assistant Professor.
• Alexei Rybkin, Ph.D. Assistant Professor.
• Walter Tape, Ph.D. Professor.
• Jonathan Wiens, Ph.D. Assistant Professor. http://www.uafcs.alaska.edu/~wiens

Contact

Links to other University of Alaska programs

• Alaska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit.
• Alaska Volcano Observatory.
• Arctic Region Supercomputing Center.
• Center for Global Change.
• Institute for Arctic Biology.
• Chemistry and Biochemistry.
• Civil and Environmental Engineering.
• Geology and Geophysics.
• Department of Mathematical Sciences.
• Computer Science.
• Mathematics.
• Statistics.
• Cooperative Institute for Arctic Research.
• School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences.
• Institute of Marine Science.
• Fishery Industrial Technology Center.
• Alaska Sea Grant Program.
• West Coast National Undersea Research Center.
• Geophysical Institute.
• Dept. of Biology and Wildlife.
• Long-Term Ecological Research (Bonanza Cr./Caribou Poker Flats LTER).
• Poker Flat Research Range.
• School of Agriculture and Land Resource Management.
• School of Management.
• M.S. in Resource Economics.
• School of Mineral Engineering.

• Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game.
• The Alaska Center.