The Budapest Semesters in Mathematics program is a study abroad opportunity for North American undergraduate students in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

. The coursework is primarily mathematical and conducted in English by Hungarian professors whose primary positions are at

Eötvös Loránd University Eötvös Loránd University ( hu, Eötvös Loránd Tudományegyetem, ELTE) is a Hungarian public research university based in Budapest. Founded in 1635, ELTE is one of the largest and most prestigious public higher education institutions in Hung ...

or the

Alfréd Rényi Institute of Mathematics The Alfréd Rényi Institute of Mathematics ( hu, Rényi Alfréd Matematikai Kutatóintézet) is the research institute in mathematics of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. It was created in 1950 by Alfréd Rényi, who directed it until his death. ...

of the

Hungarian Academy of Sciences The Hungarian Academy of Sciences ( hu, Magyar Tudományos Akadémia, MTA) is the most important and prestigious learned society of Hungary. Its seat is at the bank of the Danube in Budapest, between Széchenyi rakpart and Akadémia utca. Its ma ...

. Originally started by László Lovász, László Babai,

Vera Sós Vera may refer to: Names *Vera (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Vera (given name), a given name (including a list of people and fictional characters with the name) **Vera (), archbishop of the archdiocese of Tarrag ...

, and

Pál Erdős Pál is a Hungarian masculine given name, the Hungarian version of Paul. It may refer to: * Pál Almásy (1818-1882), Hungarian lawyer and politician * Pál Bedák (born 1985), Hungarian boxer * Pál Benkő (1928–2019), Hungarian-American che ...

, the first semester was conducted in Spring 1985. The North- American part of the program is currently run by Tina Garrett (North American Director) out of

St. Olaf College St. Olaf College is a private liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota. It was founded in 1874 by a group of Norwegian-American pastors and farmers led by Pastor Bernt Julius Muus. The college is named after the King and the Patron Saint Olaf ...

Northfield, MN Northfield is a city in Dakota and Rice counties in the State of Minnesota. It is mostly in Rice County, with a small portion in Dakota County. The population was 20,790 at the 2020 census. History Northfield was platted in 1856 by John W. No ...

. She is supported by Kendra Killpatrick (Associate Director) and Eileen Shimota (Program Administrator). The former North American Directors were

Paul D. Humke Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

(1988–2011) and Tom Trotter. The Hungarian director is Dezső Miklós. The first Hungarian director was Gábor J. Székely (1985–1995).

History of the Program

Courses offered

Courses commonly offered at BSM: * Introduction to Abstract Algebra * Advanced Abstract Algebra * Topics in Analysis * Complex Functions *

Combinatorics Combinatorics is an area of mathematics primarily concerned with counting, both as a means and an end in obtaining results, and certain properties of finite structures. It is closely related to many other areas of mathematics and has many appl ...

1 *

2 * Commutative Algebra * Conjecture and Proof *

Functional Analysis Functional analysis is a branch of mathematical analysis, the core of which is formed by the study of vector spaces endowed with some kind of limit-related structure (e.g. Inner product space#Definition, inner product, Norm (mathematics)#Defini ...

* Elementary Problem Solving * Galois Theory * Topics in Geometry *

Graph Theory In mathematics, graph theory is the study of ''graphs'', which are mathematical structures used to model pairwise relations between objects. A graph in this context is made up of '' vertices'' (also called ''nodes'' or ''points'') which are conne ...

Number Theory Number theory (or arithmetic or higher arithmetic in older usage) is a branch of pure mathematics devoted primarily to the study of the integers and arithmetic function, integer-valued functions. German mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777� ...

* Topics in Number Theory *

Probability Theory Probability theory is the branch of mathematics concerned with probability. Although there are several different probability interpretations, probability theory treats the concept in a rigorous mathematical manner by expressing it through a set o ...

* Real Functions and Measures *

Set Theory Set theory is the branch of mathematical logic that studies sets, which can be informally described as collections of objects. Although objects of any kind can be collected into a set, set theory, as a branch of mathematics, is mostly conce ...

* Introduction to Topology *

Mathematical Physics Mathematical physics refers to the development of mathematics, mathematical methods for application to problems in physics. The ''Journal of Mathematical Physics'' defines the field as "the application of mathematics to problems in physics and t ...

* Independent Research Groups * Theory of Computing *

Differential Geometry Differential geometry is a mathematical discipline that studies the geometry of smooth shapes and smooth spaces, otherwise known as smooth manifolds. It uses the techniques of differential calculus, integral calculus, linear algebra and multili ...

* Dynamical Systems and Bifurcations * Stochastic Models in Bioinformatics *

Mathematical Logic Mathematical logic is the study of logic, formal logic within mathematics. Major subareas include model theory, proof theory, set theory, and recursion theory. Research in mathematical logic commonly addresses the mathematical properties of for ...

In addition to mathematics-based courses, students have the opportunity to take culture classes, such as beginning and intermediate Hungarian Language classes, Hungarian Arts and Culture, and Holocaust and Memory.

Location

Classes are held in the College International, located at Bethlen Gábor Tér in the heart of Pest in Budapest's District VII. This is also the location for several other programs which attract both Hungarian and international students. Entry to the building is monitored; each student receives a card that electronically admits him or her to the building. There are also cameras to monitor movement exterior to the building. Several tram and bus lines have stops near the school, as does the Red Metro Line, which stops at

Keleti railway station Budapest Keleti (Eastern) station ( hu, Keleti pályaudvar) is the main international and inter-city railway terminal in Budapest, Hungary. The station stands where Rákóczi út splits to become Kerepesi Avenue and Thököly Avenue. Keleti p ...

Optional intensive language course

Prior to classes starting, students can arrive early to attend an optional two-week, 80-hour intensive language course at the Babilon Nyelvstúdió. Babilon is located at Astoria, right in front of Budapest's Great Synagogue. For approximately eight hours each day, students are immersed in the language, learning numbers, greetings, and other necessary vocabulary.

References

{{Reflist * Paul D. Humke: Math majors study abroad in beautiful Budapest, ''Math Horizons'', April 1999, 10-13. Mathematics education Study abroad programs

History of the Program

Courses offered

Location

Optional intensive language course

See also

References