The Putnam Is One of the Most Prestigious Competitions in Undergraduate Mathematics, And

October has come, so it's time to plan for the73rd Annual Putnam Mathematics Competition(sponsored by the Mathematical Association of America). This event is designed forall undergraduate students (at any level), and will be held here at Xavier -- and at hundreds of other colleges and universities across the country -- onSaturday, December 7, 2013, from 10am to 6pm.

The Putnam is one of the most prestigious competitions in undergraduate mathematics, and is well-known for its very challenging problems.The top five teams in the country will be awarded cash prizes ranging from $5,000 to $25,000, and the top twenty individual scores win prizes of $250-$2500 each (in fact, the top five are offered a full scholarship to the graduate program at Harvard University). Additionally, the highest score on the exam by a woman is awarded a $1000 prize. Independent of these prizes, participation on Putnam teams always makes a fine addition to a mathematician's résumé, and is a rewarding experience regardless of any prize.

Participants work independently on the Putnam problems for an individual score, although a school “team” will be identified and will receive a composite team score.(Each school may accept a theoretically unlimited number of registrants, but three students are designated by the university as its official school "team".The official Xavier team and its alternates will be determined by the end of October.)The competition runs across two three-hour sessions, a morning session from 10am-1pm and an afternoon session from 3-6pm.Free pizza during the afternoon break will be provided to the participants by our Department.

As in past years, I hope to hold a problem solving session on some afternoon or evening in late October or early November to show anyone interested what sorts of problems appear on the Putnam, and suggest strategies to participants for how to proceed.

For more information, I have put a brochure describing the competition in detail on the bulletin board outside my office door (Hinkle 104).You can also visit

http://www.maa.org/awards/putnam.html

Please consider participating.Note that there is no registration fee. Simply reply to this message if you are interested; I must submit registration materials by the end of next week, so please let me know before Monday, October 7.

--Dr. Otero

Dr, Otero’s e-mail address is