Where can I get a master's that relates to math and computer science and would prepare me for getting a PhD in a computational field that is yet to be determined?

September 16, 2010 8:53 PM

What is your advice for a recent graduate who majored in math and who wants to eventually do research in a computational field, but really hasn't a clue what that would be. Specifically, do you know of any masters programs where I can prepare myself without exactly knowing what I'm preparing for.

Alright, so, I graduated (from college) in 2009 with a major in math. I've always been someone who loves being a student, but during college I wasn't certain that I wanted to be in academics/research for the rest of my life. Of course, now I am, and I am regretting being a dilly-dallier. But that's the way it is.

What I hope I can do is take my math background, add a lot of computer science to it, and apply both to some area of research. I know, I know, some area of research. I've never been good at commitment. I can tell you what's caught my eye - computational anything (neuroscience, genomics, linguistics). But let me be honest, my knowledge of each of these fields consists of reading a Wikipedia article. Oh, also, I've only taken a single computer science class. I'm starting from scratch.

My idea is to find a master's program that will teach me more math and computer science, in some way enable me to narrow down my interests, and, of course, prepare me for PhD program in an eventually chosen area. Which is where you guys come in. Do you know of anything that sounds like it could do this?

One program I'm considering is getting a dual master's in math and computer science at Pitt. I think most of what I would study would be valuable down the road, and I would be able to ask around and find out more about the fields I might want to go into.

posted by fiddlesticks to Education (8 answers total)

Best answer: Most computer science master's degrees make the assumption that some of their entering students won't have CS undergraduate degrees, and provide a set of recommended classes to take to bring you up to speed. Of course, it might take you longer to graduate, but that's the case any time you switch fields. And a nice thing about CS is that you can learn tons of skills without a concrete application, and the applications sort of spring up. It's a really, really versatile subject to study. It doesn't matter if you know what you're preparing for. Sure, if you were positive you wanted to study computational linguistics, you could pick classes that were all focused on computational linguistics, but it's definitely possible to just go to CS grad school and pick up a broad set of skills and approaches.

I'd say go to the best CS school you can get into/afford for a master's. That way, if you decide to go on to a PhD you'll have a lot of options open as far as schools, and if you decide not to go on to a PhD you won't have a hard time finding a job. Not to imply that you're going to ditch your PhD aspirations, but given your lack of experience in CS I think it's a little premature for you to commit to a PhD in a computational field. You may very well find that a MS is plenty of education for what you want to do, so don't pick an MS program that's going to limit you later.

I think you'll be surprised by how much math is involved in graduate CS classes. You're perfectly free to apply to a math and CS dual program, but I think if you pick a mathy area of study within CS, you'll spend plenty of time writing proofs without the math program too.

I really, really wasn't planning on recommending any schools or programs, but maybe you should check out Stanford's ICME master's.
posted by little light-giver at 9:13 PM on September 16, 2010 [1 favorite]

Is there a professor or academic advisor from your school that you can contact?
posted by nestor_makhno at 9:17 PM on September 16, 2010

It would be worthwhile for you to look into the CS masters at Courant. I'm a math student there and the CompSci program could really fit your bill.
posted by milestogo at 9:31 PM on September 16, 2010

To elaborate briefly, there are lots of mathematics professors doing applied work in a numerical/computational setting, in all sorts of areas of research. There is definitely room to spread yourself out and find an area that works for you.
posted by milestogo at 9:32 PM on September 16, 2010

Take a quick look at doing the third year of the Tripos at Cambridge University. There is a description here - it would allow you to sample courses across a wide range of mathematics without having to make a commitment to specific narrow area of study. May not be sufficiently applied or computational for you - look for yourself.
posted by metahawk at 10:47 PM on September 16, 2010

I can't speak to the where, but perhaps attend a related conference like this one to see if it interests you.
posted by Short Attention Sp at 10:58 PM on September 16, 2010

Take a quick look at doing the third year of the Tripos at Cambridge University. There is a description here - it would allow you to sample courses across a wide range of mathematics without having to make a commitment to specific narrow area of study. May not be sufficiently applied or computational for you - look for yourself.

You're referring to Part III of the Mathematics Tripos at Cambridge. This is actually the fourth, not third, year of the course (the first 3 years are Parts IA, IB, and II).
posted by James Scott-Brown at 3:22 AM on September 17, 2010

You might also check with SIAM, Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics for their suggestions and recommendations. Many math majors end up programming. Another school which has a pretty comprehensive Applied Math program is the University of Washington, which just happens to be across the lake from Redmond: the Computer Science program is very well funded as well.
posted by ptm at 9:46 AM on September 18, 2010