Master's Programme in Mathematics – Applied Mathematics and Statistics

The programme consists of two main directions. In the first direction, you study dynamical systems and partial differential equations, and learn how to model them, using numerical methods. In the second, you learn about a variety of aspects of mathematical statistics, including Markov processes, Bayesian statistics, or an introduction to data science. You have the freedom to either combine the two directions or focus on one of them, combining it e.g. either with physics courses, in which you learn about how to apply mathematical methods, or with more courses in data science and machine learning.

If you go more in the first direction, you would start the first semester with a course in applied mathematics, a course in partial differential equations, as well as a course on scientific computing for partial differential equations. A highlight of your master's studies will be the project course on modelling complex systems. If you go more in the direction of mathematical statistics, you would start with an introduction to data science and a course on computer-intensive statistics and data mining, then follow it up with a course on the analysis of time series. The final semester of the programme consists of a degree project, in which you write an independent thesis on a topic of your choice. Many of our students use this opportunity to get opportunity to apply the methods they used to explore a real-life data set.

Courses within the programme

See the programme outline for courses within the programme.

Instruction is conducted mainly in the form of lectures, tutorials and seminars, and the language is English. The programme takes place in Uppsala.

The tutors belong to the various research groups at the Department of Mathematics. These groups are very active and hold regular seminars that Master's students are welcome to attend.

Faculty and research

The mathematical research in Uppsala has traditionally been dominated by analysis. You may have heard of Lennart Carleson who was awarded the Abel Prize or Arne Beurling who cracked the coding machine Geheimfernschreiber during World War II. They were both very prominent in harmonic analysis. Another strong area of research in Uppsala at the time was differential geometry.

During the 1990s internationalisation took place and our research has grown since, both in terms of the number of researchers and research areas. Financial mathematics came to Uppsala right after the internationalisation process began, and today we have both education and research in financial mathematics.

Mathematical skills are necessary for all industries where large amounts of information need to be processed. If you don't know what mathematicians outside academia do, it's probably because mathematicians usually have other titles. Did you know, for example, that there are mathematicians who work in medical research?

Our graduates work at, for example, Ericsson, Zettle (PayPal) and Swedbank. Some of the more common titles among our alumni are biostatistician and system developer. Furthermore, many of them work as different types of analysts. A new profession on the rise is data scientist.

Career support

The Department of Mathematics arranges a career day for mathematicians once a year. There, math students meet professional mathematicians who tell about their career paths. The department is also helpful with other types of contacts with professional life. Learn more about career support for mathematics students.

During your time as a student, UU Careers offers support and guidance. You have the opportunity to take part in a variety of activities and events that will prepare you for your future career. Learn more about UU Careers.