Our department offers Master’s degrees in Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, Statistics, and Data Science as well as a Ph.D. degree in Mathematics, which can have an emphasis on any of the four areas mentioned. The Master's degrees emphasize different aspects of theory and applications in order to prepare the students for either continuing studies at the Ph.D. Level or employment. The Ph.D. Program prepares the students for a career in research at a university, a government agency or in industry. Our faculty members are actively engaged in research and mentoring so that doctoral students can choose a faculty advisor according to the students’ interests.
Tulane is a privately endowed university located in New Orleans, Louisiana. At present it has an enrollment of about 10,000 students from almost every state and from 60 foreign countries.
The Mathematics program has, if anything, been strengthened by the reorganization of Tulane University in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Tulane's mathematical tradition can be traced back to the late nineteenth century, when Florian Cajori, later an expert in the history of mathematical notation, and the most famous translator of Isaac Newton's Principia, was the recipient of the first doctorate in mathematics from Tulane University (1894). Four undergraduates from the period up to the end of World War II (as well as Cajori) later became presidents of the Mathematical Association of America (Duren, McShane, Moise, Young); one (McShane) was a member of the National Academy of Sciences. In the 1950's Tulane became a major center in mathematical research. From 1970 to 2021, 207 Ph.D.'s were awarded.
The mathematics life at Tulane is enlivened by the distinguished mathematicians who visit each year for long or short periods, and by the international symposia which are held here from time to time. The department holds the annual Clifford Lectures, a week-long series of talks by a distinguished mathematician. A mini-conference supported by the National Science Foundation is held in conjunction with each of the Clifford lecture series. The first Clifford lecturer, in 1984, was Fields Medal recipient Charles Fefferman of Princeton University. In 1985 and 1986, the Clifford lecturers were Fields Medal winners, S. T. Yau of UC San Diego and William Thurston of Princeton University. The Clifford lecturers from 1987 through 1990 were Saharon Shelah of Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Clifford Taubes of Harvard University, Charles Peskin of Courant Institute and Haim Brezis of Université de Paris and Rutgers. From 1991 to 1996 they were Sylvain Cappell of Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, Nigel Hitchin of the University of Warwick and Persi Diaconis of Harvard University, Peter Sarnak of Princeton University and Dan Voiculescu of UC Berkeley. In 1994, a special conference on semigroups was held in honor of Alfred H. Clifford. In 1997 the Clifford lecturers were Paul Fife of University of Utah (Spring) and Peter Kronheimer of Harvard University (Fall). The speakers from 1998 to the present were Peter Bickel and Alexander Chorin of UC Berkeley, Robert Friedman of Columbia University, Sergei N. Artemov of City University of New York, T. J. Pedley of Cambridge University and Yakov Eliashberg of Stanford University.
Admission to the Graduate Programs
The Mathematics Department at Tulane University offers a Ph.D. degree in Mathematics as well as Master of Science degrees in Mathematics, Applied Mathematics and in Statistics. These programs are described below. Undergraduate students majoring in mathematics or other sciences (like engineering, physics or computer science) with a strong interest in mathematics are encouraged to apply for admission to any one of the graduate programs. People who already hold undergraduate degrees in mathematics or other sciences are also encouraged to apply.
Requirements for admission into the Tulane Graduate School include:
- The GRE Test is not required as part of the graduate application for any program.
The way to apply is to fill out and submit a Web-based application form.
If you have any problems receiving the application, you may inquire at:
Director of Graduate Studies
Mathematics Department
Tulane University
6823 St. Charles Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70118
phone: (504) 865-5727
fax: (504) 865-5063
gradapp@math.tulane.edu
MS Programs
Our MS programs are tuition-based. For the 2024-2025 academic year, tuition is $2,027 per credit hour (excluding required fees). For more details, please visit the Tuition and Fees Information page. At present, we do not offer any stipends or scholarships for entering MS students. See Program deadlines for specific application deadlines. For further information, please visit SSE Applications for Admissions. There is no application fee for the MS programs.
Ph.D. Program
Most Ph.D. students receive tuition waivers and teaching assistantships, which now include a stipend of approximately $26,500. Teaching assistants are responsible for up to 15 hours of work per week. This may involve grading, running recitations for two sections of undergraduate courses, or teaching one section of an undergraduate class independently.
Not all Ph.D. students will be required to teach for two (or more) semesters; teaching assignments depend on the department’s needs. Some Ph.D. students receive research assistant (RA) support for all five years of their program, allowing them to focus solely on research without teaching responsibilities.
Ph.D. students who are U.S. Citizens or Legal Permanent Residents are strongly encouraged to apply for external funding, such as the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP). More information can be found at NSF GRFP. Non-U.S. Citizens can explore various funding opportunities from several fields. For more details, please visit Immigrants Rising.
There is no application fee for the Ph.D. program.
The Tulane Mathematics Department is known for its friendly atmosphere and its practice of fostering close contact and cordial relations between faculty and graduate students. To us, this is a very important aspect of life here, and we strive to maintain it. The ratio of graduate students to faculty members is kept between 1.0 and 1.5. This is important to us because it allows all new graduate students to soon become familiar with everyone and feel at home. It also allows the faculty to get to know the students during their first semester.
The incoming graduate students are advised by the Director of Graduate Studies of the Mathematics Department. The Director, in consultation with the students, determines appropriate first-year courses for each student, according to their preparation and interests. Throughout the program, the Director of Graduate Studies continues to help the students plan their studies and realize their mathematical interests.
All graduate (both Master and Ph.D.) students are given a cubicle in either 6 rooms at Gibson or Stanley Thomas 4th floor equipped with desks, desktop, bookcases and chalkboards. Students also have unlimited access to the lounge and the Mathematics Library, all located within the 4th floor at Gibson Hall. The lounge, or "commons room", is a place where people gather after seminars and colloquia for refreshments and discussion.
Ph.D. in Mathematics
Completing this degree takes about 5 years, depending on the student's preparation and progress satisfying the requirements. For advanced incoming students, limited transfer credit is possible. The Ph.D. prepares the students for a research career in mathematics in industry or academia.
Mathematicians with a Ph.D. from Tulane University have been successful getting jobs in a variety of colleges, research universities, government research laboratories and industries, including biotechnology, e-commerce and financial institutions.
More details on Ph.D. Requirements
Master of Science in Mathematics
This program is designed to provide students with the opportunity to broaden and deepen their knowledge of core areas of mathematics. The course work is designed to provide both breadth of knowledge and depth in an area of interest to the student. This experience will prepare the student for further studies leading to a Ph.D. degree in mathematics.
More details on MS in Mathematics
Master of Science in Applied Mathematics
This program is designed to provide students with the opportunity to broaden and deepen their knowledge of mathematics with an emphasis on those areas that have been most important in science and engineering. Students will also examine, through seminars and case studies, examples of significant applications of mathematics to other areas. This expanded base of knowledge, together with extensive experience in problem solving, is excellent preparation for further studies leading to the Ph.D. degree or for immediate employment in many areas of industry and government.
The program is open to students who have a Bachelor's degree in mathematics or a related field, and have completed undergraduate courses equivalent to Linear Algebra, Numerical Methods, and Analytical Methods. Proficiency in a programming language is essential. Students who have not completed all of these courses may be admitted and are required to take them during the first year.
More details on MS in Applied Mathematics
Master of Science in Statistics
The Master of Science degree in Statistics combines theory and application. Students in statistics will be trained in data collection, the editing and presentation of large data sets, the analyses of these sets and the mathematical foundations upon which all of these areas are based. The training has the two-fold purpose of preparing the student to enter commercial, governmental and other work areas which extensively rely on statistical information and to prepare the student to continue in pursuit of a more advanced degree. Students with appropriate background (three semesters of Calculus and some knowledge of elementary statistics) usually complete the program in one or two academic years.
More details on MS in Statistics
Master of Data Science
The M.S. in Data Science (MSDS) program is a professional, non-thesis degree that is jointly offered by the Mathematics and Computer Science departments. The burst of data in the modern world has fundamentally changed many fields of human activity, including healthcare, energy, manufacturing and scientific research. It has also generated an ever-increasing demand for a new type of professional: the data scientist. The MSDS program aims at providing the next generation of practitioners with cutting-edge data-driven problem-solving skills. These are based on rigorous mathematical foundations, and include data management, advanced statistical modeling, as well as the practical implementation and use of state-of-the-art algorithms.
More details on M.S. in Data Science
Math 6030: Stochastic Processes
Math 6050-6060: Real Analysis I & II
Math 6070: Introduction to Probability
Math 6080: Introduction to Statistical Inference
Math 6090: Linear Algebra
Math 6110-6120: Abstract Algebra I & II
Math 6210: Differential Geometry
Math 6240: Ordinary Differential Equations
Math 6250: Mathematical Foundation of Computer Security
Math 6280: Information Theory
Math 6300: Complex Analysis
Math 6310: Scientific Computing
Math 6350: Numerical Optimization
Math 6370: Time Series Analysis
Math 6470: Analytic Methods of Applied Mathematics
Math 7010-7020: Topology I & II
Math7150: Probability Theory I
Math 7110-7120: Algebra I & II
Math 7210-7220: Analysis I & II
Math 7240: Mathematical Statistics
Math 7260: Linear Models
Math 7291-7292: Algebraic Geometry I & II
Math 7310-7320: Applied Math I & II
Math 7360: Data Analysis
Math 7510-7520: Differential Geometry I& II
Math 7530-7540: Partial Differential Equations I & II
Math 7550: Probability Theory II
Math 7560: Stochastic Processes II
Math 7570-7580: Scientific Computation II & III
Math 7710-7790: Special Topics Courses
More information on the courses
The Mathematics Department consists of 24 regular faculty members, several postdoctoral researchers and frequent visiting faculty in many areas of mathematics.
Its faculty enjoys national and international recognition in Algebra, Analysis, Differential Geometry, Mathematical Physics, Probability and Statistics, Scientific Computation, Theoretical Computer Science, and Topology. The researchers in Scientific Computation and in Statistics, and an increasing number of faculty in other areas, collaborate actively with colleagues in other units of the university such as the Schools of Engineering, Liberal Arts and Sciences, Medicine, and Public Health.
During the past five years our regular faculty have published over 100 research articles and several books. The regular faculty direct theses in very diverse areas which range through all of Pure Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, and Statistics. Detailed information can be found on the faculty page.
The Mathematics Department is housed in the upper floors of Gibson Hall, a stone structure built in 1894. Here are located faculty, graduate students, and staff offices, as well as classrooms, seminar rooms and computers linked to Tulane's main computing system. The department also contains the A. H. Clifford Mathematics Research Library, housing some 28,000 bound volumes and subscribing to 243 journals devoted to all areas of mathematics.
The department has a Microsoft Network with Windows and Mac workstations. The Math Department is connected by a cloud based network and the ability to store your files on Box (a cloud base storage). Graduate students are provided with adequate computing resources, Ethernet connections, Matlab, Mathematica, Microsoft office and other essential programs that are aimed to help aid in your success.
Tulane University is located in America's most exciting and most visited city. Our department is on St. Charles Avenue, across from Audubon Park, in a quiet residential area full of majestic oak trees and fine old antebellum homes. Often-photographed streetcars provide an easy ride to the picturesque French Quarter. New Orleans has a rich cultural life, with a symphony orchestra, operas, ballets, plays, a noted art museum, many art galleries, excellent jazz, a major jazz festival and many other events. During Mardi Gras (40 days before Easter) the town fills with parades and revelry. New Orleans is also famous for its cuisine; it boasts a number of great restaurants, and many more with good inexpensive meals.
