{"id":2249,"date":"2018-02-28T19:21:33","date_gmt":"2018-03-01T00:21:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.ams.org\/phdplus\/?p=2249"},"modified":"2018-02-28T19:21:33","modified_gmt":"2018-03-01T00:21:33","slug":"ph-d-plus-epsilon-2-and-the-american-math-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ams.org\/phdplus\/2018\/02\/28\/ph-d-plus-epsilon-2-and-the-american-math-competition\/","title":{"rendered":"Ph.D. Plus Epsilon\/2, and the American Math Competition"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Renewal<\/a>

“…that which is in locomotion must arrive at the half-way stage before it arrives at the goal”<\/p><\/div>\n

Halfway there! I’ve heard back from the committee and the administration, and passed my third-year review with flying colors. The only constructive criticism was a suggestion to get my in-preparation manuscripts submitted, which, well, duh<\/a>. It’ll happen. I’ve heard I may have an in-person meeting with them at some point, but for now the written feedback was very helpful and validating.
\n<\/a><\/p>\n

I’ll say again that really enjoyed the way I set up my electronic dossier<\/a>.\u00a0Mathematicians like websites built in a text editor the way God intended, but other professors were going to read this thing. Professors from disciplines without our carefully cultivated sense of web asceticism. I can’t say for sure that it actually helped me, but WordPress made me look\u00a0good<\/em>. I dumped all my documents in Google Drive and linked them where they belonged, and that was about it. Once I make sure I have permission to publish the link, I’ll do so for anyone who’s curious.<\/p>\n

The process really wasn’t that painful. The worrying about it was much worse than actually doing it, but I was pretty sure that was the case going in. Next time won’t be so bad.<\/p>\n

American Mathematics Competitions<\/h2>\n

Earlier this month, Hood hosted the AMC 10\/12<\/a> for the first time (or at least the first time in recent memory). These exams are for high school students – one for 9th and 10th graders, the other for juniors and seniors – and high-scoring students qualify for competitions like the AIME and the Math Olympiad.<\/p>\n

A local homeschooling family asked if we’d host the exam this year. It seemed like an easy thing to do to help out these kids and the department, so I volunteered to organize it. I registered on the MAA’s website and ordered a packet of each of the tests, made a flier, and sent it to local schools and homeschooling families.<\/p>\n

We wound up with six students taking the exams. The dates got a little screwed up by a snowstorm, but otherwise it was easy to organize. The students found their exam challenging, but I think they enjoyed the opportunity to visit a college campus and work on some interesting problems.<\/p>\n

I mention these exams for two reasons:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. This is a\u00a0really<\/em> easy way to market your school to prospective students. If you’re at a school like ours, low enrollment can be a major concern. And no matter what your numbers are, everybody wants to attract high-quality, motivated students. This exam will at least get them in your door.<\/li>\n
  2. The questions on these tests<\/a> are great! If you have a group of students who like to solve problems but aren’t ready for Putnam-level content yet, you might want to give these a shot. Sure they’re just from high school curriculum, but they’re sophisticated and interesting enough for undergraduates. A collection of a few of them might even make for a fun Math Tea<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Registration for next year’s exams won’t start until next year, so put this on your calendar if you think you might be interested. I hope we’ll have an even bigger group of students then.<\/p>\n

    <\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Halfway there! I’ve heard back from the committee and the administration, and passed my third-year review with flying colors. The only constructive criticism was a suggestion to get my in-preparation manuscripts submitted, which, well, duh. It’ll happen. I’ve heard I … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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