Honors for Math and SDS Majors

Below is information about course work and honors theses for Honors students majoring in Mathematics or Statistics & Data Science.

• Honors Course Work - ways to earn Honors credit in MATH/DATA courses
• Honors Thesis - requirements and procedures for an Honors Thesis in Math or SDS

Honors Course Work

To graduate with honors from the Honors College, 30 units of honors course work are usually required. Some students who enter with more than 30 units of transfer work may take fewer honors units; consult your Honors Academic Advising team for more information.

Honors MATH/DATA Sections Offered

The Math Department offers a few honors courses/sections that count toward a mathematics or SDS major: courses in the Calculus sequence may have special honors sections, when available. These honors classes are available to highly motivated students with strong mathematical backgrounds. Acceptance to the UA Honors College is typically not necessary or sufficient for entry. Registration for each honors section is blocked until the Mathematics Department can verify student eligibility. Eligibility rules depend on :

• Current UA Students - by nomination: Each semester, instructors of certain math courses are asked by the Mathematics Department to nominate unusually outstanding students for invitation to the honors section of certain math courses. Your instructor and/or the Mathematics Department will inform you if you are nominated, and will provide you with instructions to complete your registration.
• Fall Incoming Freshmen - by placement: Since there is no opportunity for instructors to nominate students into their very first UA MATH course, other criteria can be used to determine honors eligibility for certain courses (usually a very high placement test score plus college credit for the prerequisite course, usually from an AP exam). Generally speaking, students are informed of their eligibility during New Student Orientation; plan to speak with a math placement advisor during the lunch time sessions at your orientation program, or contact placement@math.arizona.edu once AP results are in. Eligibility is for Fall first semester Freshmen only.

Honors Contracts

Students in the Honors College may contract with the instructor of a course not otherwise available for honors, in order to earn honors credit in the course. See the Honors College website for policies and procedures.

500 Level (Graduate) Courses

Juniors and Seniors in the Honors College may enroll in 500-level courses for undergraduate honors credit. (Seniors who are not in the Honors College may also enroll in 500-level courses, if approved by the instructor and the head of the department offering the course.) Students who are interested in this option should first speak to their math faculty advisor. Instructions for enrollment are on the Math Advising Help pages.

Recent math majors have enrolled in the following graduate courses, just to give you an idea of what is available:

• 504^(*) (History of Mathematics),
• 511A/B (Algebra),
• 513^(*) (Linear Algebra),
• 515A/B^(*) (Abstract Algebra),
• 520A (Complex Analysis),
• 522^(*) (Advanced Applied Mathematics),
• 524^(*) (Theory of Complex Variables),
• 525A/B^(*) (Real Analysis of One/Several Variables),
• 527A/B (Principles of Analysis),
• 532^(*) (Topological Spaces),
• 534A/B (Topology-Geometry),
• 541 (Intro to Mathematical Physics),
• 553A (Partial Differential Equations),
• 556^(*) (Applied Partial Differential Equations),
• 564 (Theory of Probability),
• 566 (Theory of Statistics),
• 568^(*) (Applied Stochastic Processes),
• 571A/B (Statistical Regression Analysis/Design of Experiments),
• 583A/B (Methods of Applied Math),
• 587 (Perturbation Methods in Applied Math)

^(*)Class may be co-convened with a 400-level class covering the same material.

Honors Thesis

Requirements

To graduate with honors from the Honors College in their major area, students need to submit a prospectus outlining their proposed thesis work, and then complete and submit a thesis through the major department. Additionally, students must meet minimum GPA and honors unit requirements - talk to your Honors Academic Advising team for details, and be sure to check in regularly to ensure that you are on track to graduate with honors.

Enrolling in MATH/DATA 498H - Honors Research

For majors, MATH/DATA 498H is available in Fall, Spring, and even in Summer, though faculty availability in Summer is often limited. Students must enroll in 3 units of MATH/DATA 498H for two distinct semesters (6 units total) to qualify for honors. To enroll in MATH/DATA 498H, request an independent study proposal form from the Math Academic Office; once you have completed the form and obtained the necessary signatures, the Academic Office staff will process the form and enroll you in the course.

Finding a Thesis Advisor and Topic

There are a number of ways to get connected with a thesis advisor and find a research topic:

Get to know your professors.

Office hours are not just for homework help, they are also a great time to get to know your professors, and find out what research projects (if any) they have going. Also remember that you will need letters of recommendation at some point, and professors who know you well both in and outside of the classroom will write the strongest letters for you!

Enroll in MATH 396C.

MATH 396C is the Undergraduate Research Seminar, usually offered in Fall semester. The course meets once per week (1 unit), and is meant to be taken after either MATH 313 or 223. Several different faculty members will present 2-4 lectures each on research topics/projects in which undergraduates can become involved. (This course may not be used to fulfill degree requirements for the math major or minor.)

Check out the project ideas posted on our web page.

Some of our faculty have submitted information about projects that undergraduates could work on under their supervision. These project ideas are posted on our website. Students may contact the faculty members directly for more information. Please note that there are many more faculty that are happy to work with undergraduate researchers; the list is by no means exhaustive. Students may also wish to consult the list of faculty by research area.

Contact the URA program coordinator.

The coordinator of the Mathematics Department's Undergraduate Research Assistantship (URA) program can be very helpful in connecting students with research in mathematics:  ura@math.arizona.edu.