Math in Moscow (MiM) is a one-semester study abroad program for North American and European undergraduates held at the

Independent University of Moscow The Independent University of Moscow (IUM) (russian: Независимый Московский Университет (НМУ)) is an educational organisation with rather informal status located in Moscow, Russia. It was founded in 1991 by a gro ...

(IUM) in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

. The program consists mainly of math courses that are taught in English. The program was first offered in 2001, and since 2008 has been run jointly by the

, Moscow Center for Continuous Mathematical Education, and the Higher School of Economics (HSE). The program has hosted over 200 participants, including students from

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the nine ...

, MIT, Harvey Mudd,

Berkeley Berkeley most often refers to: *Berkeley, California, a city in the United States **University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California * George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher Berkeley may also refer ...

Cornell Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

Wesleyan Wesleyan theology, otherwise known as Wesleyan– Arminian theology, or Methodist theology, is a theological tradition in Protestant Christianity based upon the ministry of the 18th-century evangelical reformer brothers John Wesley and Charles W ...

McGill McGill is a surname of Scottish and Irish origin, from which the names of many places and organizations are derived. It may refer to: People * McGill (surname) (including a list of individuals with the surname) * McGill family (Monrovia), a promin ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, and

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Features

The MiM semester lasts fifteen weeks with fourteen weeks of teaching and one week of exams. Math courses are lectured by professors of the

and the Math Department of National Research University Higher School of Economics. The cultural elements of the program include organized trips to

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

and to the

Golden Ring Golden Ring may refer to: Places * Golden Ring of Russia, is a theme route over a ring of cities northeast of Moscow * Golden Ring Hotel, hotel in Moscow * Golden Ring Mall, shopping center in Rosedale, Maryland * Golden Ring Middle School, schoo ...

towns of Vladimir and

Suzdal Suzdal ( rus, Суздаль, p=ˈsuzdəlʲ) is a town that serves as the administrative center of Suzdalsky District in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, which is located on the Kamenka River, north of the city of Vladimir. Vladimir is the admin ...

. Students live in the dormitory of the Higher School of Economics. Each semester the

American Mathematical Society The American Mathematical Society (AMS) is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research and scholarship, and serves the national and international community through its publications, meetings, ...

offers up to five "Math in Moscow" scholarships provided by the

National Science Foundation The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National I ...

to US undergraduates, and the

Canadian Mathematical Society The Canadian Mathematical Society (CMS) (french: Société mathématique du Canada) is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research, outreach, scholarship and education in Canada. It serves the ...

offers one or two NSERC scholarships to Canadian students. The program is often reviewed favorably by North American students and their departments.

Curriculum

The primary curriculum is entirely mathematical, drawing from every major field of mathematics. All courses are taught jointly with the Higher School of Economics, and are often attended by students from the HSE master's program. Likewise, Math in Moscow participants may attend open lectures and seminars at the Higher School of Economics. The Math in Moscow courses are formally divided into three groups according to the expected prerequisites, however admitted students may choose to attend whichever and as many courses as they wish. An incoming aptitude exam is administered to assist in advising students' course selections. All courses expect at least a semester each of analysis and linear algebra as prerequisites. Courses at the first level require no more than this basic formal background, but are generally more intensive than their equivalents at North American universities, often taught from first-year graduate texts and presenting material typically covered only at a graduate level; intermediate courses correspond to senior-level offerings at scientifically-focused American and Canadian institutions; and advanced courses are graduate-level. ;Elementary Courses *

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 ...

* Programming: From an Art to a Science *

Topology In mathematics, topology (from the Greek language, Greek words , and ) is concerned with the properties of a mathematical object, geometric object that are preserved under Continuous function, continuous Deformation theory, deformations, such ...

I * Advanced Linear Algebra * Basic Algebra * Geometric Foundations of Analysis * Non-Euclidean geometry *

Ordinary Differential Equations In mathematics, an ordinary differential equation (ODE) is a differential equation whose unknown(s) consists of one (or more) function(s) of one variable and involves the derivatives of those functions. The term ''ordinary'' is used in contrast w ...

;Intermediate courses * Advanced Algebra *

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 ...

* Calculus on Manifolds *

Complex Analysis Complex analysis, traditionally known as the theory of functions of a complex variable, is the branch of mathematical analysis that investigates Function (mathematics), functions of complex numbers. It is helpful in many branches of mathemati ...

* Ergodic Theory of Dynamical Systems *

Knot Theory In the mathematical field of topology, knot theory is the study of knot (mathematics), mathematical knots. While inspired by knots which appear in daily life, such as those in shoelaces and rope, a mathematical knot differs in that the ends are ...

Algebraic Number Theory Algebraic number theory is a branch of number theory that uses the techniques of abstract algebra to study the integers, rational numbers, and their generalizations. Number-theoretic questions are expressed in terms of properties of algebraic ob ...

* Topology II: Introduction to Homology and Cohomology Theory *

Algebraic Geometry Algebraic geometry is a branch of mathematics, classically studying zeros of multivariate polynomials. Modern algebraic geometry is based on the use of abstract algebraic techniques, mainly from commutative algebra, for solving geometrical ...

* Basic Representation Theory *

Computability Computability is the ability to solve a problem in an effective manner. It is a key topic of the field of computability theory within mathematical logic and the theory of computation within computer science. The computability of a problem is close ...

and

Complexity Complexity characterises the behaviour of a system or model whose components interaction, interact in multiple ways and follow local rules, leading to nonlinearity, randomness, collective dynamics, hierarchy, and emergence. The term is generall ...

;Advanced courses * Equations of

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 ...

* Introduction to Commutative and Homological Algebra * Mathematical Catastrophe Theory *

Riemann Surfaces In mathematics, particularly in complex analysis, a Riemann surface is a connected one-dimensional complex manifold. These surfaces were first studied by and are named after Bernhard Riemann. Riemann surfaces can be thought of as deformed versio ...

In addition to the mathematical curriculum, students are offered electives in Russian literature, Russia history, history of mathematics and science, and Russian language.

Course structure

The courses deviate in structure from standard courses in the United States, Canada, and Europe. The Russian pedagogical tradition emphasizes developing the active participation of students. Classes are designed to encourage dialogues between the students and the teacher, which is more easily achieved in the program's small classes of two to ten students. Each math course runs three hours once a week. Roughly speaking, classes devote an hour and a half of lecture and an hour and a half of exercises, although structure varies from course to course. Students may choose any number of courses, in practice between three and six from the mathematical curriculum. Courses are run jointly with the Higher School of Economics M.Sc program. Most of the Math in Moscow courses are given at the building of the Independent University of Moscow, located in the center of Moscow near the historic Arbat, some take place in the building of the Higher School of Economics. IUM contacts http://ium.mccme.ru/english/contact.html

References

{{Reflist

External links

The home page of the program

The Facebook page of the program

Youtube videos of the program

The home page of the Independent University of Moscow (in English)

The home page of the Center for International Education Higher School of Economics
Study abroad programs Mathematics education

Features

Curriculum

Course structure

See also

References

External links