Department of Mathematics - Combined BS/MA Program (2024)

Students interested in the applying their graduate courses to the BS/MA program must consult with the appropriate graudate unit and file the appropriate paperwork before taking any graduate courses.

Introduction

The essential feature of the Combined Degree Program is that its students may use up to 9 credits of coursework taken for their undergraduate degree to count toward the M.A. degree as well.

Eligibility

The Mathematics Department offers a combined B.S./M.A. degree program for students with exceptional ability and interest in mathematics. Qualified undergraduate mathematics majors are eligible for participation in the program. Although each application is reviewed individually, the following are the usual requirements for acceptance into this program:

• GPA of at least 3.5
• No more than 15 credits remaining of required upper-level mathematics courses toward the B.S. degree
• No more than 6 credits of GenEd requirements remaining for the B.S. degree
• One to three letters of recommendation
• An essay or statement of purpose
• An interview with the Associate Chair for Undergraduate Studies and the Associate Chair for Graduate Studies.

The bureaucracy of degree times

To the University, you are an undergraduate or a graduate; the bureaucratic hive mind, computing various consequences, chooses not to create a really different category for a student in the combined program. So, if you are a student in the combined degree program, you are required to graduate with the B.S. at some point, and then to be a graduate student for at least two academic year semesters.

When you graduate with the B.S., of course you must have satisfied the B.S. requirements. Satisfaction of the M.A. requirements is a trickier matter, because the usual M.A. requires those 30 grad credits to be taken while a grad student. But you might take 600-700 level courses before the graduation with B.S., and want to count that work toward your combined degree.

The University created a policy to deal with this: an undergraduate is allowed to take up to a total of 12 credits (maximum of 6 credits per semester) of graduate level courses "for graduate credit only". Such courses cannot be used to satisfy any part of the Bachelor's degree requirements, but can be "banked" for later use to satisfy graduate degree requirements. To bank graduate courses you need to apply for permission before taking the courses. There is a form for this called Graduate Credit Permission Form which you can download from the Graduate School website. On the same webpage there is a form called Combined Bachelor's/Master's Form which you use to indicate the courses (up to 9 credits) from your BS degree which will also be used for the MA degree. Only graduate courses may be shared. This form should be completed and approved before you graduate with the BS degree.

All other credits taken toward the graduate degree must be taken after completion of the Bachelor's Degree. In general, there is no funding for the "5th year" of study. Also, this program is primarliy geared at students who do not plan to go onto a PhD program. Students who plan to pursue a PhD will generally go straight into that program after the Bachelor's.

Example Programs

There is a wide variation in coursework and acceleration among students pursuing the combined degree option, and the examples below are not at all exhaustive. In particular, most BS/MA Math students actually take more than two Math classes in some semesters, and on the other hand there can be somewhat less fast-paced paths to the combined degree. All examples assume that 9 credits of courses taken for the BS degree have been counted towards the MA degree. In the tables, "thesis" refers to 6 credits of master's thesis research. Although it is listed for a specific semester, normally the thesis work would be spread out over at least 2 semesters.

Example 1:
Here a student enters the University with Advanced Placement credit for Math 140 (Calculus I). It is compatible with the "M.A. with thesis" option, if the student gets the B.S. after Year 4, but "banks" one of the two sequences of Year 4 for graduate credit only.

Example 2:
Here the student enters the University with AP credit for Math 140 and Math 141, and takes the special honors sequence Math 340-341 (which covers the courses Math 240,241 and 246 with enrichment). The courses below could fit an extremely strong student developing an interest in topology and geometry. The particular course sequence is compatible with the taking of qualifying exams (analysis and algebra) in time for graduation, and thus fits into the "M.A. without thesis" requirements.

Example3:
Here a strong student develops a strong interest in Logic and writes a masters thesis in Logic.

Example 4:
Here a strong student writes a masters thesis in Applied Statistics.

The examples above don't list all the courses needed to satisfy degree requirements. For the Math BS/MA, a student would have to complete the following at the required grade point levels:

• An approved three course "supporting sequence"
• the University's General Education requirements;
• a total of 141 credits (the B.S. requires 120 credits and the M.A. requires 30; the total is only 141 on account of the 9 credit overlap allowance)