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VIGRE at Rutgers-New Brunswick |
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The Rutgers University Department of Mathematics in its National Science Foundation VIGRE project Extending and Renewing the Education of Mathematicians will change the way that postdoctoral fellows and graduate students interact with faculty, undergraduates, and each other. It will also increase opportunities for undergraduates, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows to explore applications of mathematics in other disciplines and in industrial practice. The improved, vertically integrated program will bring new research areas to the curriculum, prepare beginning mathematicians for the variety of career paths available to them, and increase the access of students to mathematical research at the highest level. Five research groups - Control & system theory, Discrete mathematics, Mathematical physics, Nonlinear analysis, Number theory - - will participate in the program.
Postdoctoral fellows are chosen to work with these groups, and their research and pedagogical opportunities will be designed to promote interaction across all levels of mathematical experience within the University. Faculty mentors from these groups will supervise the research development of these fellows. The fellows will be provided a mentored progression through a variety of types of teaching at the university level, such as instruction in large multi-section courses, small upper level undergraduate and graduate courses, courses with non-traditional pedagogy including small group work, and courses involving appropriate use of technology. They will engage actively in the construction of course modules for undergraduate courses and seminars for undergraduates and graduate students, while being involved with undergraduates in REU'S and with graduate students in guided study and minitutorials. The faculty mentors will also see that the fellows have opportunities to interact across disciplinary boundaries. Opportunities for internships in industry and government will be provided where appropriate.
Graduate students chosen as VIGRE trainees will participate in a program designed to provide broadened curricula and early exposure to and active involvement in research in the five core areas. Mentored "rotations" - guided study and research participation with faculty members - will supplement the first two years of graduate course work. Examples of the tasks of the trainees in the rotations could include reading a technical paper or part of a book, scientific programming in support of the research efforts of a faculty member, or preparation of a small-scale seminar talk. The trainees will interact with faculty, VIGRE postdoctoral fellows, and undergraduates in seminars in the five research areas, and will be exposed to the cross-disciplinary and non-academic uses of mathematics in an Outside Speakers Seminar. Opportunities for internships in industry and government will be provided for the trainees where appropriate. The trainees will have a structured and mentored progression through a variety of types of teaching, such as grading, recitation instruction, independent courses, course development, use of technology, workshops, supervision of independent study, and will participate in an ongoing seminar on educational issues, mathematical communication, applications of mathematics in other disciplines, and career opportunities.
Additional professional development support will be provided to VIGRE trainees and postdoctoral fellows in such areas as professional communications (writing papers and giving presentations), understanding and using funding opportunities (reading requests for proposals, writing responses), refereeing and reviewing, getting invited to meetings and making good use of them.
Undergraduates will participate in the project through direct research opportunities; seminar activities; mentoring relationships with faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and graduate student trainees; and curriculum revision. Advanced undergraduates will be encouraged to engage in REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates) activities during the academic year, and a summer REU, in which faculty from the five core areas will participate, will be supported by VIGRE. "Junior seminars" in these areas will be developed to present work at a level that advanced undergraduates and graduate students can understand; VIGRE postdoctoral fellows will help to organize the seminars and talks will include some given by VIGRE trainees. In addition to the REU's, which will provide mentoring by faculty, postdoctoral fellows and graduate trainees of undergraduates, upper level undergraduates will have the opportunity to work as peer mentors with first-year students and sophomores and through participation in workshop sections and involvement with the Gelfand Outreach Program in Mathematics. Course modules and revised courses will be designed as part of a curriculum review; such redesign will involve undergraduates (as a part of an REU activity) and graduate students.
Undergraduate and graduate courses involving elements of the five core areas have grown in number as faculty add new and updated courses; the VIGRE project offers the opportunity to conduct careful analysis of the content, level, and prerequisites for these courses, with the goal of designing coherent packages of such courses.
VIGRE postdoctoral fellowships
The Department of Mathematics at Rutgers-New Brunswick anticipates
being able to offer 2 NSF-VIGRE Postdoctoral Fellowships beginning in
the 2000-2001 academic year. These Fellowships offer the following
special features:
- Three years of academic year and summer support - at least $49,500
per year plus standard benefits, and an additional $2,500 per year for
travel, equipment and supplies. The teaching load will be one course per
semester each year (no summer teaching).
- Mentoring by senior faculty. Five
core research groups will participate in this program:
Control & system theory; Discrete mathematics; Mathematical physics; Nonlinear analysis; Number theory. - A mentored progression through a variety of types of teaching at
the university level, such as instruction in large multi-section
courses, small upper level undergraduate and graduate courses, courses
with non-traditional pedagogy including small group work, and courses
involving appropriate use of technology.
- Active participation in the construction of course modules for
undergraduate courses, seminars for undergraduates and graduate students,
involvement with undergraduates in REU's and with graduate students in
guided study and minitutorials.
- Opportunities for internships in industry and government where
appropriate.
- Additional professional development support in such areas as
professional communications (writing papers and giving presentations),
understanding and using funding opportunities (reading requests for
proposals, writing responses), refereeing and reviewing, getting invited to
meetings and making good use of them.
- VIGRE fellows must be citizens or permanent residents of the United States and newly supported fellows must be within 18 months of the award of their Ph.D.
Applicants should send a resume, with the AMS Application Cover Sheet attached, and have at least three letters of recommendation sent to:
Department of Mathematics-Hill Center
Rutgers University
110 Frelinghuysen Road
Piscataway NJ 08854-8019
The Department will begin reviewing applications November 1 and will continue its review until the positions are filled. Please give the AMS Subject Classification number of your area(s) of specialization. Qualified applicants who have already applied this year for a Hill Assistant Professorship or other position will automatically be considered for these positions. RUTGERS IS AN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER and encourages applications from women and minority-group members.
VIGRE traineeships
The Graduate
Program in Mathematics at Rutgers-New Brunswick anticipates being
able to offer 6 NSF-VIGRE traineeships for students entering its
doctoral program in mathematics in the fall of 2000. These
traineeships offer the following special features:
- Five years of support and tuition remission, contingent on
satisfactory progress - $15,000 per year plus tuition remission and
standard benefits including health insurance. No teaching during the first
two years; teaching assistantships and/or graduate assistantships
thereafter; a travel allowance for mathematics meetings during two of the
years.
- Mentored "rotations" - guided study and research participation
with faculty members - supplementing the first two years of graduate
course work. Five
core research groups will participate in this program:
Control & system theory; Discrete mathematics; Mathematical physics; Nonlinear analysis; Number theory. - A structured and mentored progression through a variety of types of
teaching at the university level, such as grading, recitation instruction,
independent courses, course development, use of technology, workshops,
supervision of independent study. An ongoing seminar on Issues in
Mathematics Education at Post-Secondary Level.
- Attention to mathematical connections across disciplinary
boundaries -- not just among academic specialties, but more importantly
among corporate and governmental applications as well, including
opportunities for internships where appropriate.
- Additional opportunities for professional development: peer study
groups, problem seminars, interaction with postdoctoral fellows and
faculty, a seminar in mathematical communication (writing papers, preparing
talks, taking advantage of meetings, refereeing, reviewing, proposal
writing)
- VIGRE trainees must be citizens or permanent residents of the
United States.
You may send e-mail to grad-director@math.rutgers.edu to request an application or to ask for additional information about the Graduate Program. Be sure to include your full name and postal address if you'd like an application! You may also get an application or apply on the web, and get other application information. Questions about the VIGRE program can be addressed to vigre@math.rutgers.edu.
Applications received before February 1 will receive full consideration.