- Our faculty are engaged in cutting edge research in a wide range of fields within mathematics and statistics, with funding from NSF, Simons Foundation, NASA, DoD, and industries.
- Over 40% of our graduates continue their studies at leading Ph.D. programs. Other students obtain employment in business and industry; or teaching positions at community colleges.
Why CSUN?
A Quality Education:
- Our established options in Mathematics and Applied Mathematics have a proven track record of student success.
- Our newly introduced Statistics option provides students with training to meet the growing demand for statisticians in industry and academia.
- Graduate students may take elective courses from CSUN’s undergraduate Data Science minor.
- The master’s thesis requirement provides research opportunities with established mathematicians, often leading to published results.
A Stimulating and Nurturing Environment
- Our department has an active research program, including a Colloquium series and three active Research seminars (in Algebra and Number Theory, Applied Mathematics, and Statistics).
- Our Industrial Math Group provides career assistance, including access to a network of academic and industrial partners who hire mathematicians and statisticians for summer intern and entry level positions.
- All graduate courses are offered in the evening to accommodate working students.
Financial Support
- We offer Teaching Associate and Graduate Assistant positions to qualified graduate students.
- Several tuition fee waivers are awarded annually to high achieving current and incoming students.
- A limited number of paid Research Assistantships are available to students who are working with Professors on research projects.
1. Required Core (15 units)
MATH 501 Topology (3 units, offered every Fall)
MATH 552 Real Analysis (3 units, offered every Spring)
Analytic Foundations (3 units) Select one of the following courses:
- MATH 541 Theoretical Statistical Inference (3 units, Fall) ***
- MATH 550 Calculus on Manifolds (3 units, Fall) *
- MATH 592A Topics in Applied Mathematics (3 units, Spring) **
Linear/Algebraic Methods (3 units) Select one of the following courses:
- MATH 540 Regression Analysis (3 units, Spring) ***
- MATH 560 Abstract Algebra III (3 units, Spring) *
- MATH 581 Numerical Methods for Linear Systems (3 units, Spring) **
Advanced Analytic Methods (3 units) Select one of the following courses:
- MATH 543 Multivariate Statistics (3 units, Fall) ***
- MATH 582A Topics in Numerical Analysis (3 units, Fall) **
- MATH 655 Complex Analysis (3 units, Spring) *
* Students in Option I will normally take MATH 550, MATH 560 and MATH 655.
** Students in Option II will normally take MATH 581, MATH 582A and MATH 592A.
*** Students in Option III will normally take MATH 540, MATH 541 and MATH 543.
2. Electives (15 units)
Elective units should support the program of study and be selected in consultation with the graduate coordinator. Up to 9 units may be taken in departments outside of Mathematics with prior approval of the Graduate Committee. A maximum of 9 units of 400-level courses may be applied toward the 31 unit degree.
3. Culminating Experience (1 unit)
Choose one of:
- MATH 697A Directed Comprehensive Studies (1)
- MATH 698A Thesis or Graduate Project (1)
Total Units Required for the M.S. Degree: 31
Comprehensive Exam or Master’s Thesis:
For their Culminating Experience, a student must successfully complete one of the following:
Comprehensive Examination: This two-part examination will be based on the students’ required courses. Students in Option I must take Algebra and either Analysis I or Analysis II. Students in Option II must take Analysis I and one other exam excluding algebra. Students in Option III must take Probability/Statistics and Analysis I.
Comprehensive exams are given in the following areas:
- Algebra (material from MATH 462, MATH 460 and MATH 560)
- Analysis I (material from MATH 501 and MATH 552)
- Analysis II (material from MATH 550 and MATH 655)
- Numerical Analysis (material from MATH 581 and MATH 582)
- Applied Functional Analysis (material from MATH 680A/B)
- Probability/Statistics (material from MATH 540 and MATH 541)
Master’s Thesis: In addition to submitting a written thesis, each student must prepare an oral thesis defense to be presented to their thesis committee.
ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS:
The University requires that applicants for the graduate program have an undergraduate degree with a GPA of 2.5 or higher. In addition, the Mathematics Department requires a GPA of 3.0 or higher in all undergraduate work. The Mathematics Department also requires applicants to have grades of B or better in the following upper-division mathematics classes:
- Advanced Calculus (equivalent to CSUN Math 450A)
- Advanced Linear Algebra (equivalent to CSUN Math 462)
Students who do not meet these requirements may still be considered for admission. If admitted, students who do not have a B or better in Advanced Calculus (MATH 450A) and Advanced Linear Algebra (MATH 462), will be required to pass MATH 450A, or MATH 462, or both, with a grade of B or better during the first year of enrollment in the program.
Applicants with undergraduate degrees in fields outside the Mathematical Sciences may also be considered, provided they have successfully taken a significant number of lower and upper division Mathematics courses.
APPLICATION PROCEDURES:
To apply for the Graduate Program, separate applications are required to the University and to the Department of Mathematics.
1. Applications to the University are submitted at Cal State Apply. This portion of the application requires official transcripts.
2. Applications to the Department require the following materials:
For candidates who wish to be considered for Teaching Associate position, first priority is given to applications received by April 15. The deadline for applications to begin in the Fall semester is July 15. The deadline for applications to begin in the Spring semester is December 1.
Producing documents with mathematical content can be a challenging task due to the large number of special characters required. The package LaTex provides an excellent way of doing this, and is the standard method of typesetting used by mathematicians worldwide. This program is freely available and can be downloaded for any platform. LaTex is also the preferred way to produce CSUN Master's Theses. To do so, you should obtain a copy of the class file CSUN.cls, which automatically produces a document which adheres to campus guidelines. This file can be obtained by contacting the Graduate Coordinator.