Master's Degree Information

While we do not offer a terminal master’s degree in Mathematics, we do offer a Master of Arts in Mathematics along the way to a PhD or for those discontinuing the PhD program. There are three routes to obtain the M.A. in Mathematics:

Advancement to Candidacy

Please see the process for advancing to candidacy under “Candidacy Requirements.” To obtain the M.A., students must complete at least 30 credit hours of coursework, with 18 credits in MATH/STAT/AMSC and 27 credits at the 600/700/800 level.

Master’s Degree without Thesis

To satisfy the requirements of the non-thesis route, students must have:

  1. Taken a total of 30 hours of courses carrying graduate credit of which at least 18 are at the 600/700/ 800 level. Of these 18 hours, no less than 15 hours must be in mathematics;
  2. Passed two written exams at the Master's level and fulfilled the course requirements; see this link for more information;
  3. Written a satisfactory scholarly paper and passed a final oral examination.

Master’s Degree with Thesis

To satisfy the requirements of the thesis route, students must have:

  1. Taken a total of 24 hours of courses carrying graduate credit of which at least 15 are at the 600/700/800 level;  Of these 15 hours at least 12 hours must be in mathematics;
  2. Taken at least 3 hours in each of two fields of mathematics distinct from the one in which the thesis is written, and obtained a grade of  "B" or better in each of these courses. These 6 hours are part of the 12 hours mentioned in (1);
  3. Taken 6 hours of thesis research, MATH799, in addition to requirements (1);
  4. Written a satisfactory thesis;
  5. Passed a final oral examination.

Thesis. The M.A. thesis should represent a meaningful piece of independent work which has some novel features, for example, the detailed working out of the application of a general theory or method to some particular case or cases of interest. It must be prepared in the form required by the Graduate School. Each member of the final oral committee must receive a legible typed copy at least one week before the final oral examination. The final thesis must be submitted online by the given semester's deadline.

Nomination of Thesis or Dissertation Committee Form: Contact the Office of Graduate Studies . This should be done at least two months prior to the date of the final oral and in keeping with the graduation deadlines listed by the Graduate School. Forms should be completed in conjunction with the student's thesis advisor and returned to the Graduate Office. This will generate the Report of  Examining Committee form sent from the Graduate School to be signed by all members of the thesis committee.  The student will be examined on the thesis and related topics at the discretion of the examiners.

The semester you plan to advance to candidacy, complete the scholarly paper, or defend your master's thesis, you must apply for graduation at the beginning of the semester. Please see the Graduate Office for details.

For master's requirements in STAT and AMSC, please refer to the respective websites.