APPLIED MATHEMATICS FACT SHEET

RESEARCH

By nature, applied mathematics research is interdisciplinary. By exploiting the common underlying mathematical framework, we initiate the cross-fertilization of ideas and techniques from one discipline to another. Many of our faculty members are either joint or adjunct faculty in another department. The faculty is widely known for its research leadership and authorship of many research papers, textbooks, and monographs, and activity on editorial boards of leading journals.

Primary Areas of Research Include

Scientific Computing
Numerical Analysis
Machine Learning
Mathematical Neuroscience
Mathematical Biology
Partial Differential Equations
Data Science
Fluid Mechanics
Asymptotic Analysis
Dynamical Systems
Financial Mathematics
Mathematical Methods
Nonlinear Waves and Coherent Structures
Probability
Applied Linear Algebra
Atmospheric Sciences
Climate Modeling
Computational Methods
Geophysics
Inverse Problems
Mathematical Ecology
Mathematical Epidemiology
Perturbation Methods
Statistics
Stochastic Modeling

283

Undergraduate Majors

EDUCATION

Undergraduate Programs

Students in the UW Department of Applied Mathematics find a culture of excellence and respect within a warm, collegial atmosphere. The Department provides opportunities to its undergraduate students in solving real world problems through class projects and research opportunities. Our students learn to model phenomena mathematically and to develop combined analytical and computational approaches for problem solving. They learn to communicate using the language of mathematics and the language of various applied disciplines, and to work with others to advance the frontiers of knowledge. Our students graduate with the knowledge, the experience, and the ability to be leaders in a society that exhibits increasing demands for competence in communication, computation, and quantitative analysis.

The Bachelor's of Science in Applied Mathematics (AMATH) incorporates interdisciplinary study in the physical, engineering, and biological sciences. The Department provides dynamic and engaging training that is especially strong in mathematical methods (scientific computing, data science, etc.) and in application areas (mathematical biology, health sciences, nonlinear waves and coherent structures, mathematical finance, data analysis and climate modeling).

The Bachelor's of Science in Computational Finance & Risk Management (CFRM) provides students with a rigorous mathematical, statistical, and computing foundation, enabling future success in the rapidly changing financial services industry. The program jumpstarts students' skills and knowledge for a career in a variety of fields, or further academic study in financial engineering, and helps them to be leaders in a society that exhibits increasing demands for competence in communication, computation, and quantitative analysis.

The Data Science Options in Applied Mathematics (AMATH-DS) and Computational Finance (CFRM-DS) provide students with training in data science methods and practices, and incorporate statistical modeling, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and optimization. In addition to students in our majors, the Department also provides undergraduate courses for the Applied and Computational Mathematical Sciences (ACMS) Bachelor’s Degree program and teaches service courses in applied mathematics for students from many other departments.

Graduate Programs

Our graduate programs offer advanced interdisciplinary study, research, and training in contemporary mathematical methods applicable to the physical, engineering, and biological sciences. The Master of Science in Applied & Computational Mathematics and Master of Science in Applied Mathematics programs can be completed full-time in one year, providing a strong foundation for professional advancement or further doctoral research.

The Master of Science in Computational Finance & Risk Management is a rigorous and flexible program in the field of quantitative finance and financial engineering that prepares students for advanced study and a wide variety of careers in the financial services industry. Domestic and international students can attend full-time or part-time, on campus or online, completing a curriculum that includes extensive instruction in the R-programming environment, classical volatility and mean-variance methods of risk analysis and portfolio optimization, modern fat tails and tail risk methods of risk management, and portfolio optimization.

The PhD in Applied Mathematics is a research-focused degree that integrates computational and analytical methods to investigate complex problems in diverse areas such as neuroscience, medical imaging, evolutionary biology, mathematical ecology, oceanography, physics, mathematical finance, and economics.

Degree Options

We offer a broad curriculum of graduate and undergraduate courses in applied mathematics to provide students with the tools they need to succeed, and we offer different degree options tailored to our students’ academic goals.

Nonlinear water waves off the coast of North Carolina during the Perfect Storm of 1991, a subject studied using advanced mathematical tools.

Applied Mathematics:

BS
BS with Option in Data Science
ACM MS On Campus
ACM MS Online
PhD

Computational Finance & Risk Management:

BS
BS with Option in Data Science
MS On Campus
MS Online

Students

Autumn 2025

283 Bachelor of Science students
201 Master of Science students
56 PhD students

Degrees Awarded

2024-2025

60 BS degrees - Applied Mathematics
21 BS degrees - Computational Finance and Risk Management
81 MS degrees - Applied Mathematics
56 MS degrees - Computational Finance and Risk Management
5 PhD degrees

FACULTY