More money brings more math to UGA
October 2, 2008 by ANGELA DASHER
Filed under News
Want to be the next Bill Gates, but confused about where to begin?
The answer is right here in Athens: the University’s Math Department.
The math department, which recently received a $3.8 million grant from the National Science Foundation, has become a key place for graduates looking to obtain careers in computer engineering, biological engineering, and physics, as well as careers related to math, such as positions in education and accounting. New research and teaching methods are being discovered by NSF’s Vertical Integration of Research and Education program, and top universities for math research are gaining grants that benefit students with a four year, master’s, or doctorate degree in math.
It has become an important factor for bringing home the big bucks.
“VIGRE is a very inclusive research program we have in the University’s math department,” said VIGRE Director Daniel Nakano, who is also professor of mathematics at the University. “The entire faculty from the department is involved in some way, whether it is as a leader, mentor, or participant. The research groups provide undergraduate, graduate, and students with opportunities to receive extensive hands-on learning experiences, and gives them a chance to get to know professors.”
VIGRE and the Introductory Virgre Research Group deal with solving problems and finding theories in complex mathematics along with discovering effective ways of teaching math concepts at the middle school, high school, and college levels. VIGRE focuses on Ph.D. research groups and graduate research groups while IVRG is for undergrads.
Research groups are offered throughout the fall and spring semesters. During the summer, seminars and two-week programs take place. To become part of the groups, students do not have to be math majors but be interested and eager to discover more about the field of mathematics. The groups earn students course credit and are possible ways of income for students who are United States citizens. All teaching assistants in the math department are also trained during the summer as a part of VIGRE.
“We are very excited about receiving a second grant from VIGRE because the trend is starting to be that NSF grants are usually granted for small research projects and not an entire department,” said VIGRE Co-Director Clint McCrory, also a math professor. “Our research program has been very successful due to the fact that we haven’t tried to determine a strict plan in advance. Instead, we have simply set a basic outline and then let the rest fall into place.”
According to the National Research Council, UGA’s Math Department is ranked 56th in the nation. In the Southeast, UGA is among three other universities receiving VIGRE grant – Duke, Georgia Tech, and Louisiana State. But UGA is the only school that received a second VIGRE grant.
University students earning degrees in math have also gone on to continue their education at top universities such as Columbia, Georgia Tech and Purdue along with some being employed by the National Security Agency and other government agencies.
“The job market is continuing to show a stronger interest in people who have a background in mathematics because they are easier to train, especially at computer companies and biological engineering companies,” said Nakano.
To learn more about VIGRE and UGA’s Math Department, check out their website at math.uga.edu/vigre/.
