A Mathematician's Practical Guide to Mentoring Undergraduate Research is a complete how-to manual on starting an undergraduate research program. Readers will find advice on setting appropriate problems, directing student progress, managing group dynamics, obtaining external funding, publishing student results, and a myriad of other relevant issues. The authors have decades of experience and have accumulated knowledge that other mathematicians will find extremely useful.

Undergraduate Research (UR) can be defined as an investigation into a specific topic within a discipline by an undergraduate student that makes an original contribution to the field. It has become a major consideration among research universities around the world, in order to advance both academic teaching and research productivity. Edited by an international team of world authorities in UR, this Handbook is the first truly comprehensive and systematic account of undergraduate research, which brings together different international approaches, with attention to both theory and practice. It is split into sections covering different countries, disciplines, and methodologies. It also provides an overview of current research and theoretical perspectives on undergraduate research as well as future developmental prospects of UR. Written in an engaging style, yet wide-ranging in its scope, it is essential reading for anyone wishing to broaden their understanding of how undergraduate research is implemented worldwide.

This edited volume explores how undergraduate research and research-based teaching is being implemented in countries around the world. Leading educators come together to discuss commonly accepted definitions of undergraduate research, country-specific models and partnerships for student research, university policies and practices to support faculty and staff who engage students in research, and available assessment data that supports the effectiveness of undergraduate research as a means to increase student engagement and academic achievement. As undergraduate research has spread around the world, professors, administrators, and policymakers benefit by learning about other approaches and models of undergraduate research.

This volume provides accessible and self-contained research problems designed for undergraduate student projects, and simultaneously promotes the development of sustainable undergraduate research programs. The chapters in this work span a variety of topical areas of pure and applied mathematics and mathematics education. Each chapter gives a self-contained introduction on a research topic with an emphasis on the specific tools and knowledge needed to create and maintain fruitful research programs for undergraduates. Some of the topics discussed include:• Disease modeling• Tropical curves and surfaces• Numerical semigroups• Mathematics EducationThis volume will primarily appeal to undergraduate students interested in pursuing research projects and faculty members seeking to mentor them. It may also aid students and faculty participating in independent studies and capstone projects.

Are you a mathematics major or thinking about becoming one? This friendly guidebook is for you, no matter where you are in your studies. For those just starting out, there are: interactive exercises to help you chart your personalized course, brief overviews of the typical courses you will encounter during your studies, recommended extracurricular activities that can enrich your mathematical journey. Mathematics majors looking for effective ways to support their success will discover: practical examples of dealing with setbacks and challenges in mathematics, a primer on study skills, including particular advice like how to effectively read mathematical literature and learn mathematically focused programming. Students thinking about life after graduation will find: advice for seeking jobs outside academia, guidance for applying to graduate programs, a collection of interviews with former mathematics majors now working in a wide variety of careers—they share their experience and practical advice for breaking into their field. Packed with a wealth of information, Navigating the Math Major is your comprehensive resource to the undergraduate mathematics degree program.

Aspiring and Inspiring is a collection of essays from successful women and gender minority mathematicians on what it takes to build a career in mathematics. The individual essays are intended to advise, encourage, and inspire mathematicians throughout different stages of their careers. Themes emerge as these prominent individuals describe how they managed to persist and rise to positions of leadership in a field which can still be forbidding to many. We read, repeatedly, that individual mentorship matters, that networks of support can be critical, and that finding fulfillment can mean formulating one's own definition of success. Those who aspire to leadership in the field will find much useful advice here. The cumulative power of the collection carries a strong impact. The glass ceiling is very real in mathematics and is the result of cultural and sociological factors at work in our community. The book makes clear that we won't achieve equality of opportunity merely by exhorting those who are often excluded to change their behaviors and their goals. The need for systemic cultural change is vividly, at times painfully, evident in these stories. As Dr. Erica Graham says in her powerful and moving essay, we need “a different kind of academy”, and we'll only get it by working for it. We can start by reading this book and recognizing the kind of academy we currently have.

This cross-disciplinary volume incorporates diverse perspectives on mentoring undergraduate research, including work from scholars at many different types of academic institutions in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It strives to extend the conversation on mentoring undergraduate research to enable scholars in all disciplines and a variety of institutional contexts to critically examine mentoring practices and the role of mentored undergraduate research in higher education.