The Degree
Students who are enrolling in the fall of 2009 or later must earn thirty graduate credits to complete the degree. Students who enrolled before the fall of 2009 have additional options.There is no thesis requirement and there are no qualifying or comprehensive exams. The Graduate School requires an overall QPI of 3.00 or better for graduation.
Entering students are expected to be familiar with single and multivariable calculus and with linear algebra. Additional mathematical experience at the undergraduate level is desired; this may include taking additional upper-division courses in mathematics, statistics,economics, computer science, physics and engineering.
Each student must take four required courses and four elective courses in Mathematics and Statistics, which are at the heart of the program. All core and elective courses are three credits.
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The four required courses are: Deterministic Mathematical Models; Numerical Methods; Probability Theory,; and Mathematical Statistics. These courses are offered at least once every academic year. It is possible to substitute similar courses offered in the Biostatistics and Epidemiology graduate program for these core courses (Probability Theory and Mathematical Statistics).
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Elective courses include: Partial Differential Equations; Optimization; Mathematics of Signal Processing; Introduction to Financial Mathematics; Regression Methods and Analysis of Variance; Design of Experiments; Introduction to Biostatistics; Data Exploration and Data Mining among others. These courses are offered on a rotating schedule, and other departments at Georgetown University offer other courses that may counted as electives. Course lists and names are subject to change.
In addition, students are required to take courses or study course components that will expose them to applications of mathematics.
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Students must take one course in a non-mathematical science that will expose them to issues and methods in that area. These courses will use mathematical modeling, or advanced statistical/mathematical techniques for data analysis. Examples include: Population Genetics (Biology); Clinical Trials (Biostatistics); Information Warfare (Computer Science); and Vision: Neurons to Behavior (Neurosciences). [The course list changes every semester].
Students who are entering the program in the fall of 2009 or later must also complete a practical experience. This should be
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a guided professional experience, either in the statistics consulting clinic, or in the applied mathematics clinic, or in a research tutorial that is directed or co-directed by departmental faculty (three credits).
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Students who can document prior or concurrent practical experience from past or current employment or from an internship may take another mathematics or statistics elective course instead (three credits).
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All students must prepare a written report and give a presentation on a practical experience (zero credits, required for graduation). The topic can be an internship, or a mathematically substantive project carried out in the guided practical experience taken at Georgetown University, or a mathematically substantive project done as part of the student's employment.
For students entering in the fall of 2009 or later, internships are not required and do not carry academic credit. However, internships are strongly recommended, and the program will help students find internship opportunities.
Students may enroll in up to four courses per semester. A student may enroll in five courses only if she/he is in the second semester in the program, and then only if she/he has done well in her/his first semester and if there is space available in the desired fifth course. In that case, the student must enroll during the add/drop period after classes have started.
Students who enrolled before fall 2009 or who have been accepted and were allowed to defer their entry until fall 2009 may choose whether they want to complete the degree requirements according to the rules spelled out above or according to the following old rules. The old rules require 31 credits for graduation, not 30. The only difference is that the 3 credit practical experience is replaced with four credits, distributed as follows:
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Two credits (pass/fail) from the Statistical Consulting Practicum or Applied Mathematics Clinic. In statistical consulting, students will solve statistical problems for clients on campus. An important aspect will be student-client communication. The applied mathematics clinic is run as a seminar on topics of current interest in applied mathematics, with students preparing and giving presentations.
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Two credits (pass/fail) form an Internship. Students are expected to spend a substantial amount of time (the equivalent of three to four weeks) in a professional off-campus environment that is related to their graduate training.A report and a presentation are required.
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Consulting credits may be substituted for the internship requirement and prior or current work experience with quantitative work in a professional environment may be also be used to satisfy the internship or consulting requirement.
