Summer Undergraduate Mathematical Sciences Research Institute

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The Summer Undergraduate Mathematical Sciences Research Institute (SUMSRI) is a program conducted by the Department of Mathematics at Miami University. Each year, SUMSRI prepares about 15 students, recruited from institutions across the nation, for graduate programs in the mathematical sciences by providing them with intensive exposure to research and graduate-level mathematics. At the core of this experience is a seminar in which students conduct research under the guidance of a faculty member; each year, three different seminars are offered and students are placed in seminars according to their interests. The program is supplemented by short courses in Real Analysis, Algebra, Mathematical Writing, and GRE Preparation and a colloquium series featuring (primarily) female and minority mathematical scientists. In the year following their participation in the program, participants are asked to present their research at regional and national meetings, with financial support from SUMSRI.African Americans and Hispanics, who now comprise over 25% of the U.S. population, together received less than 6% of the 500 mathematics PhDs awarded to U.S. citizens in 2009. The percentage of PhDs earned by female U.S. Citizens was slightly over 30% of the total. Because of the shortage of minority and female mathematicians, SUMSRI is especially interested in, but not limited to, underrepresented minorities and women, with the goal of exposing them to research and graduate education in the mathematical sciences. In the past twelve years, SUMSRI has proven its effectiveness in preparing students for the challenges of graduate education. Of the 173 graduates of the program, 45.7% are from underrepresented minority groups; among these, 60.8% are either in a graduate program or have completed a graduate degree, while 11.3% are still undergraduates. Women comprise 75.1% of program graduates, of whom 73.8% are either in a graduate program or have completed a graduate degree, while 11.5% are still undergraduates. SUMSRI can now count 16 graduates who have received the Ph.D. degree; of these, 12 are women and 6 are from underrepresented ethnic groups. Eight of these have found employment in mathematical science departments within academia, 2 in non-mathematical science departments, and 5 in industry / government.