Five-Year Program
Advanced mathematics majors at Georgetown are invited to consider entering an accelerated degree program in which both baccalaureate and MS degrees can be obtained in five years. The MS can be earned in two semesters after completing requirements for the BA or BS. Six credit hours are available for dual credit, i.e. they may be applied towards both degrees. These doubly-counted courses must be selected from the set of core courses and must be taken in the senior year. Graduating seniors will thus have already taken 2 of the 9 required courses. An additional 3 credit hours taken as an undergraduate may be counted towards the graduate degree, provided that these credits are not needed for the BA or BS degree. Advanced students can thus satisfy up to 1/3 of the course requirements of the MS degree in the four undergraduate years. The practical experience is typically taken in the spring semester of the fifth year. Thus, in the final two semesters, a typical student in the accelerated degree program will carry a course load of nine to twelve credit hours each semester, which is normal for graduate students.
Applications for the accelerated degree must be submitted in the Spring semester of the applicant’s junior year within the usual deadline. The accelerated degree program can only be entered in the fall semester. Interested students should contact a member of the graduate program committee early in their junior year and should also discuss their plans with their undergraduate advisor.
Normally the student should take MATH-501 Probability Theory and Applications in the Fall of their senior year, and MATH-503 Mathematical Statistics in the Spring of their senior year. This will prepare them for additional statistics courses in their fifth year.
