Resources for current and accepted students

Graduate Assistantship Info

Graduate Assistantships can provide some financial support while also giving you experience that can be professionally beneficial.

A limited number of graduate assistantships (GA's) are available to students who have a strong academic record and experience and skill in teaching/tutoring students. A typical GA position provides the GA with one free class plus a stipend of $1250 per semester for doing five hours of work per week. In the Mathematics Program, GA's tutor in the Mathematics Learning Center. Work hours can be scheduled to accomodate individual schedules and can be arranged in the evening.

Only accepted students can be considered for an assistantship. If you wish to apply for a GA position and you have been accepted to the program, please fill out this application form:

Mathematics GA Application Form

Accepted students should also email the program coordinator (jbrazas@wcupa.edu) to indicate their interest in a graduate assistantship. Applications from students who have not been accepted to the program yet, will not be considered.

More information can be found at The Graduate School Graduate Assistantships page.

Technology Access

WCU students have access to cutting edge computing software and are expected to use it in many of their classes. Click here for a comprehensive list.

Proprietary Computational Software

Mathematics Freeware

  • R Statistical Package (programming language for statistical computing)
  • Desmos (free graphing calculator)
  • Desmos3D (free 3D graphing calculator)
  • Geogebra (graphing calculator and geometry)
  • Python (programming language)
    • NumPy (Python library for numerical computing)
  • SageMath (Computer Algebra System)
  • GAP (Computer Algebra System)

Mathematics Resources

Forums and Wiki

Mathematics Research Access

  • The WCU Library gives you access to a wide range of mathematics journals and books. If what you need is not immediately available, submit an Interlibrary Loan Request.
  • WCU Digital Commons provides access to some faculty research papers and WCU Master's Theses.
  • arXiv open access preprint distribution service.
  • MathSciNet (indexes and reviews mathematics papers. Get access through the WCU Library)

Topic Specific Resources

Abstract Algebra
Number Theory
Discrete Math and Graph Theory
Logic, Set Theory, and Category Theory
Topology

Other Notes, Blogs, and Video Channels

Typesetting Resources

Technical writing is an important skill that we foster in our graduate students. The standard tool for communication and publication of scientific documents is LaTex. LaTeX is a freely available, high-quality typesetting system; it includes features designed for the production of technical and scientific documentation.

Latex Resources

Capstone Requirement

The capstone requirement of the MS program requires you to present typed work.

  1. Masters Theses must be typed in order to be accepted by the graduate school. Formatting requirements are very specific.
  2. The Non-thesis option is to complete an e-portfolio. It is a requirement of this program that any written items in the e-portfolio be typeset to be accepted.

Math Communities

Writing a Master's Thesis

The thesis option is recommended for MS Mathematics students interested in research and is strongly recommended for students who want to pursue a PhD in Mathematics (or a related field). Here is an outline of the process.

What is a Master's Thesis and how I get started?

  • A Master's thesis in mathematics is a comprehensive research document written by a graduate student, where they delve into a specific mathematical topic. A thesis will often contribute original research to the field by proving new theorems or developing novel approaches to existing problems. In other cases, a thesis may be expository in nature, contributing an original perspective on a specialized topic. A thesis is written under the guidance of a faculty advisor, to demonstrate their mastery of the field.
  • Prospective thesis students should select a specialized area within mathematics in which they wish to do research and approach a potential advisor with expertise in this field. To have a successful experience, you should select your topic and advisor well in advance of your expected graduation date (at least a full year). Graduate faculty are not required to advise thesis projects and might only accept top students to mentor. Typically, it is best to ask a faculty member who already knows you.
  • If a faculty member offers to serve as your thesis advisor, it is recommended that you allow them help you select a research topic or question. 
  • Masters Thesis students should expect that the research and writing process will take at least a full academic year. During this year, you should sign up for MAT 609 (Thesis I) and MAT 610 (Thesis II) to allow for two of your program electives to provide credit for the research writing process.

Masters Thesis Expectations

  1. A Masters Thesis must be written in a specialized area within mathematics, e.g. number theory, topology, combinatorial game theory, etc. 
  2. The thesis must include a thorough review of existing literature related to the research topic, demonstrating understanding of previous work in the field.
  3. The main body of a math thesis will present clear, logical, and rigorous mathematical proofs to support the results of the thesis.
  4. A thesis is should be highly detailed, providing significant background information and definitions for readers (especially if the thesis is expository in nature).
  5. A thesis must be typeset using latex and meet the formatting guidelines of The Graduate School.  The writing should be clear and concise, with proper mathematical notation and explanation of concepts. 

Download a WCU Master's Thesis Template

Defending Your Thesis

When your Master's Thesis is complete, you must present a "Thesis Defense" it in front of your Thesis Committee. This is a 50-minute talk in which you present the results of your thesis to a committee of mathematics faculty. You should only be defending your thesis when you have a nearly final draft of your thesis ready to submit.

  1. Select a Thesis Committee. Your thesis advisor will automatically serves as the chair of this committee. You should ask two other WCU Mathematics Faculty Members to serve on this committee as well.
  2.  Schedule your Thesis Defense with your three committee members. Your entire thesis committee must be present at this presentation. 
  3. Send the most recent draft of your thesis to your thesis committee at least a week prior to your defense. They may send you comments or corrections.
  4. After your defense, your thesis committee will give a Pass/Fail decision for your thesis. If you pass, they will sign a page that will serve as the "signature page" in your published thesis.

Submission to The Graduate School

  1. After your thesis is approved by your committee, you must submit your final draft to the Graduate School via Digital Commons. Here is the Masters Thesis Submission Guide.
  2. Be prepared to receive formatting revisions from The Graduate School.

Examples of Recent Master's Theses

John Aceti, Higher Spanier Groups. 2023.

Mark Myers, Unique Lifting to a Functor. 2022.

Sarah Emery, About Automorphisms of Some Finite Groups. 2021.

Corrin Stratton, Pellian Partizan Subtraction. 2019.