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mathematics graduate programs.

The program which leads to the Master or Arts or Master of Science in mathematics is designed to achieve two objectives:

  1. Provide a strong program of course work in mathematics beyond the undergraduate level and
  2. Be flexible enough to accommodate a wide variety of student interests and backgrounds. There are no required courses in the program, but students are strongly encouraged to develop an emphasis in the courses which make up their individual plan of study; such an emphasis provides both focus and depth in the graduate experience.

Whatever their objectives in their graduate programs, students should form a close working relationship with a faculty member having similar mathematical interests as soon as possible. This will ensure good advice in planning a coherent plan of study. In addition, an advisor may be able to suggest special topics courses, independent study, or the thesis option which could all be used to pursue one's interests in greater depth.

Finally, students who plan to pursue a doctoral degree in mathematics should include a sequence in analysis and a sequence in algebra in their plans of study.

All applicant should submit:

Master of Science

To obtain the Master of Science degree in mathematics, the student must:

  1. Earn a total of 36 acceptable credits, at least 24 of which must be in mathematics.
  2. Choose mathematics courses with a number of 8000 or above and ending in the digit zero or six, excluding 8010, 8020, 8040 and 8880. At least 18 of these credit hours must be courses with a number ending in a zero digit*.
  3. Choose no more than 6 hours of independent study, although interested students are encouraged to petition the Graduate Program Committee to take additional hours of independent study to supplement existing course work.
  4. Maintain a "B" (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) average in all course work with no grade lower than a "C" (2.0 on a 4.0 scale).
  5. Up to 12 hours of graduate work may be taken in other areas related to mathematics, such as physics or computer science, with the permission of the Graduate Program Committee. Such work will not count toward the 18 hours described in "2." above*.
  6. Such courses must be also at the 8000 level or above and end in the digit zero or six.
  7. Pass a written comprehensive examination based on three related courses (one of which must have a number ending in a zero digit) consisting of two parts. The first part is a 3-hour examination which may be open book. The second part is a one-week take-home examination. The examination is normally taken in the semester immediately preceding graduation and should be scheduled well in advance of the graduate college deadlines
  8. Courses numbered 8--5 will not count towards the MA or MS degrees in Mathematics.

Master of Arts

To obtain the Master of Arts degree in mathematics, the student must:

  1. Earn a total of 30 credits in mathematics.
  2. Complete a thesis (MATH 8990) of six semester hours, which may be applied towards the 30 hours total.
  3. Choose mathematics courses with a number of 8000 or above and ending in the digit zero or six and excluding 8010, 8020, 8040 8806, and 8880. At least 15 of these credit hours must be courses with a number ending in a zero digit. These 15 hours may include the 6 hours of thesis, and 3 hours of independent study, MATH 8970.
  4. Up to 12 hours of graduate work may be taken in other areas related to mathematics, such as physics or computer science, with the permission of the Graduate Program Committee. Such work will not count toward the 12 hours described in "3." above*.
  5. Such courses must be also at the 8000 level or above and end in the digit zero or six.
  6. Maintain a "B" (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) average in all course work with no grade lower than a "C." (2.0 on a 4.0 scale)
  7. Pass a comprehensive exam including an oral defense of the thesis.
  8. Courses numbered 8--5 will not count towards the MA or MS degrees in Mathematics.

Admission Requirements for the MS or MA Degrees

Admission to a degree program is based on evidence of ability to successfully complete the requirements for the program.

For unconditional admission, an applicant should:
  1. Have completed a bachelor's degree with a grade point average of at least 3.0 in mathematics courses taken.
  2. Have completed 15 credit hours of mathematics courses beyond calculus, including MATH 3230/8235 Introduction to Analysis or equivalent.
  3. Students lacking the 15 credit hours beyond calculus may be eligible for admission in a provisional or unclassified status with a deficiency to be made up in addition to the degree requirements above.
  4. Students who satisfy the admission requirements in (1) above except for the GPA requirement may be granted provisional admission to the graduate program. They will be granted unconditional admission upon completion of 12 graduate hours with a grade of "B" or better in each course.

Master of Arts for Teachers of Mathematics (MAT)

To obtain the MAT degree, the student must complete 36 credits as follows:

  1. Complete the following required mathematics courses: MATH 8060, 8236, 8036, 8020, and 8040.
  2. Complete three approved education courses for graduate students only (nine credits), one of which must involve the use of microcomputers in the classroom.
  3. Complete 3 hours for graduate students only (8--0) in mathematics or education.
  4. Choose one of the following three options (nine credits):
    • Statistics option: STAT 8005, 8015, MATH 8010, or MATH 8746, 8756, and 8010.
    • Mathematics option: three courses in mathematics with the number of 8000 or above, but excluding any one whose last digit is "5", except MATH 8645, Modern Geometry, which can be included.
    • Computer Science option: three courses in computer science with a number of 8000 or above and with at most two of the form 8xx5..
  5. Pass the MAT comprehensive examination which is composed of two parts:
    • The mathematics part is three hours in length and covers the courses MATH 8060, 8236, 8036, 8020 and 8040. The examination consists of two questions from each of the five courses and the student is required to do 8 of the 10 questions.
    • The education part of the examination is two hours in duration and covers all the education courses which the student has taken for the degree. A student must pass both parts in order to pass the examination.

Admission Requirements for Master of Arts for Teachers of Mathematics (MAT) Degree

A student meeting the following conditions may be admitted to the MAT degree program:

  1. Have taken a programming language at the college level.
  2. Hold state certification for teaching secondary school mathematics.
  3. Have obtained at least a "B" (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) average in previous mathematics courses, including two courses beyond elementary calculus.

Graduate Assistantships

The mathematics department annually awards four graduate assistantships for work within the department. There are also several joint UNO/MCC positions where the teaching assignments are at Metropolitan Community College. All of these positions pay an annual stipend plus a waiver of tuition. For the details of the nature of the work, please contact the department chair.

Graduate Minor in Mathematics

To earn a graduate minor in Mathematics, a student must complete nine hours of graduate level mathematics (8000 level courses ending in either a '6' or '0' digit, excluding 8010,8020,8040 and 8880), with at least six hours of courses at the strictly graduate level(courses ending in a '0' digit). In addition, all grades earned must be 'B' or higher.

For more information...

Please call (402) 554-3430 or visit our homepage at http://www.unomaha.edu/wwwmath.

last updated : 11/2/2011 at 2:43pm