Degrees Offered


At the time of writing, the mathematics department has 53 faculty, approximately 93 Ph.D. students, and approximately 20 Master's students.

A list of the UCSD mathematics faculty and their research interests can be found here. The Ph.D. in Mathematics program produces graduates with a preparation in teaching and a broad knowledge of mathematics. Our students go on to careers as university professors, as well as careers in industry or government. The graduate program at UCSD offers the following degrees: Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Master of Arts (MA), and Master of Sciences (MS).



You can get one too.
Masters Degrees

UCSD offers three different tracks towards a Masters degree:



MA in Pure Mathematics


Course Requirements

Full-time students are required to register for a minimum of twelve (12) units every quarter, eight (8) of which must be graduate-level mathematics courses taken for a letter grade only. The remaining four (4) units can be approved upper-division or graduate-level courses in mathematics-related subjects (Math 500 may not be used to satisfy any part of this requirement).

The degree may be terminal or obtained on the way to the Ph.D.. A total of forty-eight (48) units of credit is required. Twenty-four (24) of these units must be graduate-level mathematics courses approved in consultation with a Faculty adviser.

In the selection of course work to fulfill the remaining twenty-four (24) units, the following restrictions must be followed:

  • No more than eight (8) units of upper-division mathematics courses.
  • No more than twelve (12) units of graduate courses in a related field outside the department (approved by the Mathematics Department).
  • No more than four (4) units of Math 295 (Special Topics) or Math 500 (Apprentice Teaching).
  • NO UNITS of Math 299 (Reading and Research) may be used in satisfying the requirements for the Master’s degree.
Qualifying exams

Two written comprehensive examinations must be passed at the master's level, one from Area 1 and one from Area 2, both with a Master's Pass or better.

Foreign Language Requirement

A reading knowledge of one foreign language (French, German or Russian) is required. In exceptional cases other languages may be substituted. Testing is administered by faculty in the Department who select published mathematical material in one of these languages for a student to translate.

Time Limits

Full-time M.A. students are permitted seven (7) quarters in which to complete all degree requirements. While there are no written time limits for part-time students, the Department has the right to intervene and set individual deadlines if it becomes necessary.





 MA in Applied Mathematics


Course Requirements

Full-time students are required to register for a minimum of twelve (12) units every quarter, eight (8) of which must be graduate-level mathematics courses taken for a letter grade only. The remaining four (4) units can be approved upper-division or graduate-level courses in mathematics-related subjects (Math 500 may not be used to satisfy any part of this requirement).

The degree may be terminal or obtained on the way to the Ph.D.. Out of the total forty-eight (48) units of required credit, two applied mathematics sequences comprising twenty- four (24) units must be chosen from the following list [not every course is offered each year]:
  • Math 202A-B-C (Applied Algebra)
  • Math 210A-B-C (Mathematical Methods in Physics & Engineering)
  • Math 261A-B-C (Combinatorial Algorithms)
  • Math 264A-B-C (Combinatorics)
  • Math 270A-B-C (Numerical Mathematics)
  • Math 271A-B-C (Numerical Optimization)
  • Math 272A-B-C (Numerical Partial Differential Equations)
  • Math 273A-B-C (Scientific Computation)

In certain cases, a petition may be approved to substitute one of these requirements from the following list of sequences:
  • Math 220A-B-C (Complex Analysis)
  • Math 230A-B-C (Ordinary Differential Equations)
  • Math 240A-B-C (Real Analysis)
  • Math 280A-B-C (Probability Theory)
  • Math 281A-B-C (Mathematical Statistics)
  • Math 282A-B (Applied Statistics)

In choosing course work to fulfill the remaining twenty-four (24) units, the following restrictions must be followed:
  • At least eight (8) units must be approved graduate courses in mathematics or other departments [a one-year sequence in a related area outside the department such as computer science, engineering, physics or economics is strongly recommended].
  • A maximum of eight (8) units can be approved upper-division courses in mathematics.
  • A maximum of eight (8) units can be approved upper-division courses in other departments.
  • A maximum of four (4) units of Math 500 (Apprentice Teaching).
  • No units of Math 295 (Special Topics) or Math 299 (Reading and Research) may be used.
Qualifying exams

Two written comprehensive examinations must be passed at the master's level in any of the required applied math sequences listed above. The instructors of each course should be contacted for exam details.

Foreign Language Requirement

There is no foreign language requirement for the MA. in Applied Mathematics.

Time Limits

Full-time M.A. students are permitted seven (7) quarters in which to complete all requirements. While there are no written time limits for part-time students, the Department has the right to intervene and set individual deadlines if it becomes necessary.




MS in Statistics

Course Requirements

Forty-eight (48) units of course credit subject to adviser approval are needed. Up to 8 of them can be from upper-division Mathematics. Up to 8 of them can be graduate courses in other departments. Math 295 and 500 generally don't count toward those 48 units, and neither do seminar courses, unless the student's participation is substantial. Fulltime students are generally required to register for at least 12 units per quarter.

The M.S. in Statistics is designed to provide recipients with a strong mathematical background and experience in statistical computing with various applications. Out of the 48 units of credit needed, required core courses comprise 28 units, including:
  • Math 281A-B-C (Mathematical Statistics)
  • Math 282A-B (Applied Statistics)
and any two topics comprising eight (8) units chosen freely from Math 287A-B-C-D and Math 289A-B-C (see course descriptions for topics). The following guidelines should be followed when selecting courses to complete the remaining 20 units:
Upon special approval of the faculty adviser, the rule above, limiting graduate units from other departments to 8, may be relaxed in making up these 20 non-core units.

Qualifying exams

Two written comprehensive examinations must be passed at the Master's level in related course work (approved by a faculty adviser). Instructors of the relevant courses should be consulted for exam dates as they vary on a yearly basis.

Foreign Language Requirement

There is no foreign language requirement for the MS. in Statistics.

Time Limits

Full-time M.S. students are permitted seven (7) quarters in which to complete all requirements. While there are no written time limits for part-time students, the Department has the right to intervene and set individual deadlines if it becomes necessary.



Note: Any Master's student can submit for consideration a written request to transfer into the Ph.D. program when the qualifying exam requirements for the Ph.D. program have been met and a dissertation adviser is found. Approval by the Qualifying Exam and Appeals Committee (QEAC) is not automatic, however.



Doctoral Degrees

UCSD offers two different tracks towards a Doctoral (Ph.D.) degree:


In addition, the Mathematics Department participates in the following multi-departmental Ph.D. programs:


Ph.D. in Pure Math, Applied Math, or Statistics


Overview of the typical Ph.D. track

In the first and second years of study, Ph.D. students take courses in preparation for three written qualifying examinations (quals). More information about quals can be found here.

After the quals are passed, the student is expected to choose an adviser and follow a course of study agreed on by the two of them. Ph.D. students are required find a research adviser by the end of their third year. At this point, the student chooses a thesis topic, finds a doctoral committee and presents a talk on their proposed research topic.

If the committee is satisfied with this talk, the student has Advanced to Candidacy. Ph.D. students must Advance to Candidacy by their 11th quarter of study. The student will then pursue their research agenda with their adviser until they have solved an original problem. The student will submit a written dissertation and reconvene his or her committee for a Final Defense. At the Final Defense, the student gives a seminar talk that is very similar to a talk that he or she might give for a job interview.

In total, the length of time to graduation averages five years.

Financial support

Nearly every admitted Ph.D. student gets financial support. The financial support is most commonly in the form of a Teaching Assistantship (TA-ship), however, Research Assistantships and other fellowships are also available. The majority of students in the Ph.D. program work as TA's for anywhere from one to four classrooms of students in classes ranging from precalculus to graduate-level courses.

Course requirements

Full-time students are required to register for a minimum of twelve (12) units every quarter, eight (8) of which must be graduate-level mathematics courses taken for a letter grade only. The remaining four (4) units can be approved upper-division or graduate-level courses in mathematics-related subjects (Mathematics 500 may not be used to satisfy any part of this requirement). After advancing to candidacy, Ph.D. candidates may take all course work on a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory basis. Typically, students should not enroll in Mathematics 299 (Reading and Research) until they have passed both Qualifying Examinations or obtained approval of their faculty adviser. See more information about courses here.

Qualifying Exams

Information on qualifying exams can be found here.

Foreign Language Requirement

Information on the foreign language requirement can be found here.

Advancing to Candidacy

Information on advancing to candidacy can be found here.

Defending your Dissertation

Information on defending your dissertation can be found here.

Time Limits

The normative time for the Ph.D. in mathematics is five (5) years. Students must be advanced to candidacy by the end of eleven (11) quarters. Total university support cannot exceed six (6) years. Total registered time at UCSD cannot exceed seven (7) years.



Ph.D. in Computational Science

The Ph.D. program in Computational Science, Mathematics, and Engineering (CSME for short) is a campuswide program that began in 2006. A MS program in CSME is forthcoming.

The CSME program is administered by faculty in the Department of Mathematics as well as faculty in the Center for Computational Mathematics (http://ccom.ucsd.edu/). Detailed information about the Ph.D. in CSME program can be found at its website (http://csme.ucsd.edu/program.html).