Mar 28, 2024  
2014-2015 Graduate Bulletin 
    
2014-2015 Graduate Bulletin [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Mathematics, M.S.


Program Requirements

Upon completing one semester of graduate work, the student should select a three-person advisory committee from the graduate faculty. The student, with the help of his or her academic adviser, should prepare an Application for Approval of Graduate Program form. The advisor will distribute copies to the graduate faculty, the student’s advisory committee, the department chair, the departmental file, and the student. The department chair and all three committee members must approve subsequent changes in the program.

The student must enroll in the two-semester advanced calculus sequence at the graduate level at the beginning of the graduate program if the equivalent of this sequence was not included in the student’s undergraduate preparation. None of these courses can satisfy any part of the minimum hour requirements for the master’s degree, and a grade of B or above must be earned in each of the two courses.

The following minimal requirements must be included in the program.

  1. 30 hours of graduate coursework beyond the equivalent of a Southern Miss undergraduate degree in mathematics;
  2. 21 hours of courses numbered above 600;
  3. 18 hours of mathematics courses numbered above 600;
  4. 3.0 GPA for graduation; and
  5. a comprehensive examination.

NOTE: Subject to approval of the department chair and the student’s advisory committee, an outside minor consisting of nine (9) semester hours may be used as a portion of the 30-hour program.

Courses offered by the department are grouped into nine areas. The student with the help of his or her academic adviser should select a suitable balance in at least three of the nine areas.

Nine Specialty Areas


Note:


The focus of the master’s program is computational mathematics. This is reflected in its course scheduling. The courses MAT 560 , MAT 561 , (area 7); MAT 526 , MAT 610 , (area 4); and MAT 605 MAT 606  (area 8) are scheduled biannually. Thus, these courses can form the core (three areas) for most, if not all, students. However, areas other than these three are offered in response to the interests and research of the graduate faculty.

Each candidate for the master’s degree will be expected to demonstrate subject matter mastery on the master’s comprehensive examination. For the non-thesis student, the master’s comprehensive examination is a written examination, it must be successfully completed two weeks prior to graduation and no later than the requirements for graduation set by the Graduate School, and it will cover the content of two courses (selected by the advisory committe in consultation with the student) from each of the student’s three areas of specialization. For the thesis student, the master’s comprehensive examination is an oral examination that will be primarily a defense of the thesis.

The student who desires to write a thesis must selct a graduate faculty member who agrees to serve as thesis director. Prior to beginning the thesis, a student must submit (for approval to his or her advisory committee) a prospectus, the guidelines for which are available in the departmental office.

Summary of Important Events for the Thesis Option


  1. Arrange for a graduate advisor during the second semester;
  2. Gain approval of a written thesis prospectus from the master’s advisory committee by the end of the second semester;
  3. Pass a comprehensive examination and successfully defend the thesis by the end of the fourth semester; and
  4. Continuous enrollment - Students must meet the requirement specified in the front section of this Bulletin.