Project MATH

  1. What is Project MATH?

The Project MATH aims at study, typically in the form of a research project, in a particular area of specialization that is not offered by regularly scheduled courses. Each participant must find a member of the faculty as the supervisor, and arrange to work with him or her in a small study group or on a one-on-one basis.

The Project MATH has four major components:

  1. literature study,

  2. research project,

  3. seminar presentation,

  4. written report.

The relative weight and workload of each will vary according to topic area, the level of preparedness of the participant(s), and the number of students in the study group. Possible research tasks include formulating and proving a conjecture, proving a known theorem in a novel way, investigating a mathematical problem by computer experiments, or studying a problem of practical importance using mathematical methods and/or numerical simulation.

Third year students in Mathematics may continue their Fall semester’s Project MATH in the Spring semester. The project report in the spring semester will typically be the Bachelor Thesis, which is a graduation requirement for every Jacobs U undergraduate. Note that the Bachelor’s Thesis may also be written as part of any other course by arrangement with the respective instructor of record.

  1. Choice of Supervisor

The choice of supervisor is the student’s responsibility. It must be announced to the instructor of record by email by the deadline given below (see section 7). The instructor of record will not assign supervisors. A change of supervisor after the deadline is in general not possible.

Students may do their Project MATH work with a supervisor in a related field (e.g. physics, computer science, electrical engineering), or with a supervisor from an external research institution, provided the topic is suitable. When choosing an external supervisor

  • the deadlines and policies must be followed;

  • a faculty member from Mathematics must be designated as a co- supervisor before the choice-of- supervisor deadline.

  1. Grading

The final grade is composed of three contributions: Semester plan 10%, project presentation 30%, and final report 60%.

Not upholding a deadline (see section 7) means you will weaken or even forfeit that part of the grade.

  1. Semester Plan

The semester plan shall define the goals for the semester at an early stage. It should contain, if applicable to the particular project, a concise formulation of the scientific question, a motivational example, an easy special case, a brief summary of prior work, a work plan, and an initial list of references. The plan shall typically not exceed 1–3 typeset pages.

It is understood that not all planned goals may ultimately be attained, or that goals may change. Nonetheless, it is very important that the process of defining goals is initiated early.

A copy of the semester plan must be submitted to the supervisor and to the instructor of record by the deadline mentioned below. The supervisor determines the grade in consultation with the instructor of record.

  1. Presentation

Towards the end of the semester, typically in the final week of classes, a seminar-style presentation has to be given by each Project MATH student. This presentation is graded by the supervisor in consultation with other faculty present according to the following criteria:

  • Clarity. Is the material presented clearly? Are the mathematical or sci- entific questions well motivated? Is the core structure of the argument exposed? Can somebody who is not an expert in the field understand what you have done?

  • Competence. Show that you understand the subject. Answer questions concisely; admit if a question exceeds what you can say on the spot.

  • Timing. The talk is 20 minutes plus 10 minutes for questions. Don’t rush, find a good pace that the audience can follow.

  • Presentation material. Is the writing on the blackboard well organized? Aren’t you writing too much or too little? If you use slides, aren’t the slides overloaded? Is the text readable?

  • Presentation style. Does your presentation motivate the audience? Is your oral communication style lively and interactive? Is there even some stretch of suspense in your presentation? Does your oral account give an extra over the written material?

It recommended that you practice your presentation in full at least once, talking in front of a real or no audience. This is the only way to be reasonably sure of your timing and of a proper flow of your presentation.

For presentation you have 20 minutes + 10 minutes for questions. Going over time worsens your grade, and at some point you’ll be cut short. If your presentation lasts 18 minutes, no one will be mad. If it is 15 minutes, you have mis-planned. If you are at minute 24, something is wrong in your timing and you will be interrupted. Make sure you have a clock! Also, try to build in some flexibility in your presentation: you will mention something only if you have time, but can easily leave it out.

If you will be doing a computer presentation (powerpoint, keynote or PDF) you need to make sure that you have the right adapters to connect to the LCD projector (beamer). If you cannot bring your own laptop ask other students or the instructor in advance, whether you can use their equipment. In that case make sure to bring your presentation on an USB stick (memory stick).

  1. Report

The scientific quality of your Project MATH is evaluated as part of your report grade. On the eve of the seminar presentations (see section 5) a draft for the report is due. This serves as a basis for the final report, in which you should also consider comments and criticism that you earned during the seminar presentation.

The evaluation of the report is primarily based on the following.

  • Originality. Any intellectual “add-on” beyond what the supervisor put in?

  • Soundness. Mathematical correctness, professional implementation, sound interpretation of results, all claims supported?

  • Completeness. Given the time constraints, did the project work exhaust the possibilities to be explored?

  • Organization. Is the report logically structured? Are summary, introduction, conclusions, and references adequate? Meaningful sectioning?

  • Writing style. Clear formulations? Good text flow? Appropriate language (not sloppy in technical sections, not too dry in motivation sections)? Correct English?

  • Layout. Length, general visual appearance, good quality symbols, figures, captions?

  • Timeliness. Was the draft of the report delivered on time? Final submission on time?

The supervisor grades

the final report.

  1. Schedule for Fall 2020

For the Fall Semester 2019, the deadlines & dates are as follows:


  • Choice of advisor due: October 02, 2020, 23:59

  • Semester Plan due: October 23, 2019, 23:59

  • Project Presentation: December 8, 2020, schedule TBA

  • Report draft
    due:     December 8, 2020, 23:59.

  • Final Report due: December 31, 2020, 23:59.






All items like semester plan, preliminary report, final report, must be sent to your supervisor and the instructor of record by email before the due time/date.