AIM Ph.D. Program Requirements

Admission

Two types of students are generally considered for admission to the AIM Ph.D. program:

• Mathematics majors, with excellent grades in mathematics courses and excellent letters of recommendation. The admissions committee will also take into account other scholarly activities such as summer research experience, published papers, or courses in other fields.
• Non-mathematics majors from the physical, life, or engineering sciences, or from other appropriate areas of study. Such students are expected to have completed at least two upper division mathematics courses, and/or have substantial exposure to mathematics in other courses, and may submit a GRE mathematics subject test score. Other experience in working with mathematics (for instance, summer research positions) will also be taken into account, as well as grade point average and letters of recommendation.

To apply, please visit the Admissions page in the Department of Mathematics. 

Financial Support

Graduate students admitted to the AIM Ph.D. program are granted full financial support including an annual stipend, tuition waiver, and health insurance extending also to dependents for a period of five years, subject to satisfactory progress. Most are supported as graduate student instructors, but research assistantships, traineeships, and some fellowships are also available.

Counseling

AIM Ph.D. students will receive course counseling from the AIM Director until they match with their co-advisors. The Graduate Program Coordinator will process departmental and Rackham paperwork.

Course Comments

At the end of the Fall and Winter semesters, the Graduate Office will send this Google Form requesting course comments from the graduate students’ course instructors.  Students will receive a report with the instructors’ course comments.

Progress Reports

In October and March, the Graduate Office will send this Google Form requesting feedback from the graduate students’ research advisors. 
Students will receive a progress report with responses from their advisors to the following questions:

1. What research projects or preparation has the student been working on this term with you?
2. Please provide your assessment of the student's progress toward their degree.
3. Do you have any advice, feedback, or suggestions for the student?
4. When do you anticipate the student will finish his/her degree?

The RCRS Training Requirement

The University of Michigan is committed to fostering and upholding the highest ethical standards in the conduct of research and scholarship.

U-M follows all federal and state guidelines regarding RCRS training for principal investigators, scholars, trainees, staff, and students. As part of our ongoing commitment to strengthen the culture of ethical research and compliance across U-M, all employees and students engaged in research and scholarship are required to complete RCRS training.
-- quoted from the Office of Research Ethics and Compliance

MLB and PhD Mathematics students are required to take UC 415 Section 001 which is taught by Mathematics faculty and fulfills the LSA RCRS requirement.The Rackham Graduate School requires that Ph.D. students complete RCRS training prior to advancing to candidacy. 

Milestone Requirements

The requirements for the AIM Ph.D. program are designed to offer maximal flexibility in the pursuit of interdisciplinary study while simultaneously ensuring full rigor of training. These requirements differ substantially from those of the Mathematics Ph.D. degree and are detailed below. The order of this list of requirements mirrors the order in which the requirements should be completed.

1. AIM QR Examinations 
2. Coursework
3. Advancing to Candidacy
4. Research, Writing, & Defense of Dissertation