Focal Areas

Focal Areas for Applied Mathematics

The seven major Focal Areas for the field of applied mathematics are listed below, along with examples of recommended courses for completing the requirements in each focal area. In addition to the listed example courses, appropriate courses containing substantial mathematical content, offered by any department, may be taken to satisfy field requirements in mathematics and its applications, subject to approval by the student's Special Committee.

All coursework that is part of graduate curriculum must be taken at the 5000 level or higher, other courses will not count toward graduate degrees. Courses noted below with asterisks have not yet been designated with a 5000 level course number and may not be offered to gradaute students for some time.  

A. Computational Methods

  • CEE 5745/6745, 6300, 6720
  • CS 6210, 6220, 6241
  • MAE 6230
  • MATH 5250, MATH 4260*/CS 4220*

B. Mathematical Analysis

  • MATH 6110, 6120, 6210, 6220, 7130 (not both 6110 and 6210; not both 6220 and 7130)

C. Differential Equations and Dynamical Systems

  • CEE 5735/6736
  • CHEME 7530
  • MAE  5790, 6010, 6110, 6330, 6840, 
  • MATH 6260, 6180, 6150, 6160, 6230, 6280, 6520, MATH 6270/MAE 7760

D. Stochastic Methods

(Probability, Stochastic Processes, Statistics, Machine Learning, Signal and Image Processing, etc.)

  • BTRY 7180 (note: most 6000-level courses not suitable)
  • CS 6780, 6783, 6784, 6788
  • ECE 5555, 5620, 5630
  • MATH 6710, 6720, 6730, 6740, 7740
  • ORIE 6500, 6510, 6540, 6570, 6580, 6700, 6710, 6720, 6750, 6780
  • STSCI 6520, 7170

E. Optimization and Discrete Mathematics

  • MATH 5410, 4420*, 6230
  • ORIE 6300, 6310, 6320, 6325, 6327, 6328, 6330, 6334, 6335

F. Algorithms and Complexity

  • CS 4814*, 6810, 6820, 6840
  • ORIE 6350

G. Algebra and Logic

  • CS 6117, 6764, 6766, 6860
  • MATH 6310, 6320, 6340, 6390, 6810, 7880