Degree Requirements

Master of Science (M.S.) in Mathematics

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 average in all course work with no grade lower than a C.
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 may not count toward the 18 hours described in b) above. Such courses must also be at the 8000 level or above and end in the digit zero or six.
6. Pass a written comprehensive examination based on three related courses (one of which must have a number ending in a zero digit) which consists 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.

Master of Arts (M.A.) in Mathematics

1. Earn a total of 30 acceptable credits.
2. Must complete 6 hours of thesis, which may be applied towards the 30-hour 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 hrs. may include the 6 hrs. 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 may not count toward the 12 hours described in 3) above. Such courses must also be at the 8000 level or above and end in the digit zero or six.
5. Maintain a B average in all course work with no grade lower than C.
6. Pass a comprehensive exam including an oral defense of the thesis.

Master of Arts for Teachers (M.A.T.) in Mathematics

1. Earn a total of 36 acceptible credits, including required courses: MATH 8060, MATH 8236, MATH 8036, MATH 8020, and MATH 8040.
2. Complete three approved education courses for graduate students only (9 credits), one of which must involve the use of microcomputers in the classroom.
3. One approved course for graduate students only (3 credits) in Mathematics or Education.
4. Choose one of the following three options (9 credits):
   • Statistics option: MATH 8010 plus STAT 8005 and STAT 8015, or MATH 8746 and MATH 8756.
   • 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 both parts of the MAT comprehensive examination. The examination is offered three times a year; on April 15, July 15, and November 15th (or the proceeding Friday if the date falls on a weekend). The two parts of the exam are as follows:
   • The Mathematics part is three hours in length and covers the courses MATH 8060, MATH 8236, MATH 8036, MATH 8020, and MATH 8040. The examination consists of two questions from each of the five courses and the student is required to do eight of the ten questions.
   • The Education part of the examination is 2 hours in duration and covers all the education courses which the student has taken for the degree.