Mathematics

The Department of Mathematics at the University of Idaho has a strong national reputation for preparing graduate students with a balanced curriculum that emphasizes fundamental math concepts, hands-on research and specialized math skills. We offer the following degrees: Master of Science in Mathematics (M.S., applied option), Master of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.) Mathematics, Doctorate (Ph.D.) in Mathematics, and Ph.D. in Mathematics with a teaching emphasis.

The M.S. and Ph.D. degrees are also available in bioinformatics and computational biology (BCB). This degree blends course work and practical experience in biology, mathematics, statistics and computer science. The focus of this degree is on learning to develop and use computational and mathematical tools to analyze biological data.

While math isn’t necessarily a career title, it is a fundamental science that’s integral to the most innovative industries today. With an advanced degree in mathematics, you’ll have the skills you need to effectively apply mathematical theories, computational techniques and algorithms to solve economic, scientific, engineering, physics and business-related problems.

Depending on your interests and the goals of your advanced degree, you’ll have many opportunities for research and hands-on experiences. Your course and lab work will better prepare you to make an immediate impact in projects you tackle in your career.

Prepare for Success

If you’re interested in earning a graduate degree in mathematics, you should have good reasoning skills and be able to identify, analyze and apply basic principles to technical problems. Written and oral communication skills also are important, because you need to be able to develop compelling arguments and discuss proposed solutions with people who may not have your extensive mathematics background.

Your First Year

In order to earn a master's in mathematics, you’re required to take 30 credits of course work. The Master of Arts in Teaching program is designed for certified teachers who wish to strengthen their subject matter preparation. Ph.D. candidates must complete a minimum of 36 credits, at the 500 level. Visit our graduate page for more information.

Depending on your interests, your first year could include classes, such as:

• Elementary Topology (Math 411): You’ll study metric spaces; topological spaces; compactness; connectedness, continuity.
• Mathematical Biology (Math 437): The course will cover modeling biological phenomena, mostly through differential equations; mathematical topics include stability analysis and limit cycles for nonlinear ODEs, spatial diffusion and traveling waves for PDEs; biological topics include models of predator-prey systems, infectious diseases and competition.
• Probability Theory (Math ID&WS451): You’ll learn about random variables, expectation, special distributions (normal, binomial, exponential, etc.), moment generating functions, law of large numbers and central limit theorem.

Course descriptions from the 2010 Catalog

What You Can Do

With an advanced degree in mathematics, you’ll have many career options open to you. Here are some careers our recent graduates have selected:

• Financial analyst
• Computer programmer
• Engineer
• Insurance, business and financial consultant
• Security consultant
• Business technology, research and product development (develop new software, hardware, Internet applications or security and data management systems)
• Teacher
• Professor and researcher

Opportunities

Employers are very interested in hiring individuals with math degrees, especially those with advanced degrees. Depending on what industry you enter, your salary could range between $60,000 and $100,000, while the higher end of the scale is generally earned by those in managerial positions. Here’s a snapshot of career opportunities:

• Teaching and research: You have the option to teach mathematics in high school or junior college. If you have a Ph.D. you may consider teaching at the university level. In most cases this will also give you the opportunity to explore theoretical and applied math research in collaboration with fellow faculty members and students.
• Government and engineering: You can apply your mathematical skills to government and engineering industries to solve practical problems such as calculating the optimal price point for products, analyzing the efficiency of manufacturing processes, or calculating the drag of a new car design. Or, you may use your problem-solving skills to interpret or develop encrypted codes.
• Business and finance: Statisticians, actuaries and research and financial analysts collaborate to calculate the probable outcome of different activities.

Current Research

Our program is well known for its research efforts in several areas:

• Algebra, algebraic geometry, and number theory
• Analysis and differential equations
• Combinatorics
• Discrete geometry
• Bioinformatics and mathematical biology
• Mathematics education
• Probability and stochastic processes

Activities

The Putnam Competition is a yearly event that brings math students together to study, prepare and share ideas. In fact, many of our students place in the top 25 percent nationally. In addition, the Math Club on campus hosts a variety of events throughout the year.

Hands-On Experience

Research is a vital component of your graduate work. There are several interesting research projects happening on campus, and many of them are a joint effort between multiple departments and faculty and students. Here is an example of a groundbreaking research project happening on campus:

• Bioinformatics and Mathematical Biology: Our research in mathematical biology employs tools from stochastic processes, differential equations and statistics. Topics being actively investigated include population genetics, evolutionary biology, biofilms, ecology and epidemiology.
  

Facilities

The Department of Mathematics bioinformatics group, in collaboration with other departments, has recently attracted more than $20 million in multiyear funding. This means there is more money for research and additional funding to enhance undergraduate course work. In addition, the high-tech Polya Math Learning Center is a one-of-a-kind environment that provides an innovative lab experience. Many of our mathematics majors find opportunities to work part time in the Polya Math Learning Center as tutors.

Online & Outreach

You also have the option to earn a Master of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.) in mathematics through our distance education program, Engineering Outreach. While this degree does not give certification in high school teaching, you can teach at some community colleges or you may also work toward earning your teaching certificate.