UNT Department of Mathematics: Degree Programs

Undergraduate Program | Graduate Program

Graduate Program

About the Department

The Department of Mathematics at the University of North Texas offers programs of instruction and research leading to the Master of Arts, Master of Science, and Doctor of Philosophy degrees. Students pursue a program of study which includes both pure and applicable mathematics.

UNT has internationally recognized faculty whose research areas include algebra, combinatorics, topology, numerical analysis and computer methods, descriptive set theory, chaos and dynamical systems, representation theory, functional analysis, image processing and pattern recognition, logic and foundations, and differential equations. The department has 29 faculty members and approximately 60 graduate students.

The department has a faculty colloquium that meets throughout the year and hosts the Millican Lecture Series, which annually feature some of the world's outstanding mathematicians. These individuals remain in residence in the department for a week or longer, during which time they are available for interaction with faculty and students. (Past lectures are located in the Millican Lecture Archives). Research groups within the Department sponsor regular seminars for faculty and graduate students. Some of these are designed for students with a modest background in the field of study; others are more research oriented and target faculty and advanced graduate students. The topics for the seminars change from year to year.

The University maintains one of the nation's finest library collections in the mathematical sciences with more than 18,000 volumes. The library currently subscribes to many mathematics journals, has 388 complete runs, and 729 journal titles represented.

Admission

Applicants need to apply to the Toulouse School of Graduate Studies at the University of North Texas and specify mathematics as their course of study. Complete information about how to apply is available online or by calling the graduate school at (940) 565-2636 or toll free (888) UNT-GRAD.

Admission Requirements
Coursework
A well-qualified applicant will have the equivalent of an undergraduate degree with a major in mathematics from UNT. The precise requirements for a major in mathematics can be found Undergraduate Catalog. An applicant should have completed foundational courses in Calculus, Linear Algebra, and Differential Equations, as well as the equivalent of at least seven, one-semester, upper-division mathematics courses. Students without this background may be provisionally admitted by the Mathematics Department if their record of achievement indicates they will be able to successfully pursue a graduate degree in mathematics. Students admitted provisionally by the department may be required to make up any deficiencies upon enrolling at UNT.

GPA
Detailed information about minimum GPA requirements is available from the graduate school (requires Adobe Acrobat Reader).

Standardized Tests
Applicants for admission are required to take either a GRE exam (quantitative and verbal) or the GMAT before they can be unprovisionally admitted to the Toulouse School of Graduate Studies. Applicants may be provisionally admitted to the graduate school without having met this requirement, however they must take a standardized test by the end of their first semester. Applicants who have not taken a standardized test will not be allowed to continue past their first semester.

International Students
There are additional requirements for international students. Links to more information specifically for international students may be found here.

Financial Assistance

Teaching Fellowships are available through the Mathematics Department. Teaching Fellows are paid a stipend of $15,293 for Masters level students or $16,030 for Doctoral level students. Duties normally consist of teaching two classes per semester. All Teaching Fellows pay tuition and fees at the rate for Texas residents, which is $1,938 per semester for the 2007-2008 academic year.

To apply for a Teaching Fellowship, complete the online application (an e-mail address is required) and arrange for two letters of recommendation from recent mathematics teachers to be sent directly to:

Department of Mathematics
University of North Texas
Department of Mathematics
P. O. Box 311430
Denton, Texas 76203-1430
Attn: Graduate Advisor

It is also possible to print the application form and mail it to the address above.

Word version (requires Microsoft Word or equivalent)

pdf version (requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)

Department of Mathematics Teaching Fellowship Awards are only available to students who are accepted into the Toulouse School of Graduate Studies.

Information about extra-departmental financial assistance may be found here.

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Mathematics offers three graduate degrees, Master of Arts, Master of Science, and Ph.D.. Generally, the Master of Arts degree is designed for students who plan to pursue a Ph.D. degree for careers in teaching, business, or industry and the Master of Science degree is designed for students who plan to use mathematical theory and technique in fields outside mathematics. The Ph.D. degree is designed to provide the student with competence in several major areas of mathematics and to provide for intensive study and research in the area of specialization.

Degree Requirements
Master of Arts
The M.A. degree requires 30 hours and a masters thesis. M.A. students take 24 hours of approved course work and 6 hours of thesis. At least 15 of the required 24 hours must be from the year-long graduate sequences in algebra, analysis, and topology. In addition, students must demonstrate a foreign language proficiency and defend their thesis at a final oral examination. More information and the precise degree requirements for an M.A. may be found in the UNT Graduate Catalog.

Master of Science
Students pursuing an M.S. degree take 36 hours of approved course work, including at least 15 hours from the year-long graduate sequences in algebra, analysis, and topology. Students are also required to demonstrate a proficiency in computer programming equivalent to that acquired in a 6-hour introductory course and to either make a formal presentation of a masters project or take a final oral examination. More information and the precise degree requirements for an M.S. may be found in the UNT Graduate Catalog.

Doctor of Philosophy
UNT requires doctoral students to complete 90 hours of graduate work beyond the bachelor's degree or 60 hours of graduate work beyond a master's degree. Doctoral students are required to pass qualifying examinations in two areas chosen from algebra, complex analysis, real analysis, and topology. The departmental provisions concerning the qualifying examinations may be found in the Qualifying Examination Policy. Students must also demonstrate proficiency in a foreign language, write a dissertation, and take a final comprehensive oral examination, which is primarily a defense of the dissertation. More information and the precise degree requirements for a Ph.D. may be found in the UNT Graduate Catalog.