The Directed Reading Program (DRP) is a program that pairs undergraduate students with PhD students for one-on-one independent studies over the course of a semester. The program was started at the University of Chicago but it is now running in several mathematics departments in the country.
Before the start of the program, mentors will propose reading topics, typically on subjects outside regular course offerings. Mentees will then apply for topics that interest them most. Highly motivated mentees may also propose their own topics and be paired to a suitable mentor. Accepted mentees will be matched to a mentor, who may or may not be from the same department (math/AMS).
The program is largely free form and without theme inasmuch as content is concerned. During the semester, mentors and mentees may take the project in new directions, whichever way that they like.
Mentors and mentees are expected to meet for 1 hour every week. Mentees should prepare to talk about what the learned, discuss questions they had, and plan on what they will work on in the following week.
Mentees are expected to work independently for at least 3 hours every week and prepare for the meetings with their mentors.
Towards the end of the program, mentors will work with their mentees to prepare their talks for the final presentation session, e.g., choosing a specific topic/theorem, going over the structure of the talk, and practicing the talk.
At the end of the semester, there will be a presentation session. You do not need to present the entirety of what you learned. In fact, just a small nugget of what you want the audience to take away is possibly more impactful!
After the presentations, we will collect individualized feedback from mentors and share them with presenters.
All members of the departments and friends of speakers are welcome to join. There will be pizza (or some good food)!
one-on-one mentoring,
learning advanced/research topics not usually covered in class,
practice presentation skills and get feedback,
expand your network,
books!
opportunity to practise mentoring,
guide budding mathematicians,
learn new math or relearn old math more deeply,
expand your network,
books!
For more information, feel free to contact any organizer through their individual emails (see current semester page for their names and department).