Endowment to support summer undergraduate mathematics research

Summer Math Scholarship.

Published July 15, 2016 This content is archived.

Starting in Summer 2017, one UB mathematics major will be the first to receive the “Summer Math Scholarship” to pursue individual research with a faculty mentor. The Summer Math Foundation, Inc. of Amherst, NY has funded the program for 2017 and simultaneously established an endowment to support the program for future summers.

Each fall, potential scholarship recipients will apply jointly with a willing faculty mentor, writing up a description of the proposed research and the hoped for outcomes. The mathematics department’s undergraduate studies committee will select the winner. During the Spring semester the student will register for an independent study, including literature review and discussion of research tools.

The six-week full-time summer program will include a stipend of $3000. The following academic year the research will be written up into a senior honors thesis.

The foundation has also included funding for the preparation of a research tools guide book for use by the scholarship recipients.

Mathematics Department Chair David Hemmer said he was thrilled with the news of the donation. “Each year we have mathematics majors who wish to pursue summer research but, for financial reasons, are forced to find a regular job instead. This funding allows such a student to have a year-long, one-on-one research interaction with the faculty mentor without sacrificing financially. Such experiences are enormously valuable for students considering graduate school in mathematics."