Master in Mathematics

Master's Programme in Mathematics

Hone your analytical powers and deepen your knowledge of mathematics! Umeå University offers a two-year Master's programme in Mathematics with a close connection to the mathematical research groups at the university. The programme will equip you with a solid theoretical foundation for pursuing careers in research and development, be it in government, finance, the tech industry or academia.

While studying

You will be part of a small, human-sized Master's programme and Mathematics department, giving the possibility for richer and more personal interactions between students and teachers. During their first course on the programme, incoming students choose a mentor from one of our research groups – Discrete Mathematics , Analysis and Modelling , Computational Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics . The mentor follows the student through the programme, giving advice on the choice of courses and thesis topics, as well as on applications to PhD programmes.

Flexibility in courses

As a student on the programme, you have great freedom to pick and choose courses in mathematics and from related fields such as computer science, physics and statistics from a large list of electives in order to tailor your degree to you interests and future plans.

Teaching on the programme consists of a mixture of lectures, seminars and individual supervision. All teaching on the programme is done in English and by active researchers. Students on the programme also have the opportunity of taking part in a semester-long exchange abroad at partner mathematics departments in Germany, Italy, France, Spain, England, the Czech Republic, China, South Korea, Turkey and Kazakhstan as part of their studies.

After a semester of common courses and two semesters of electives, students spend their final semester working on a Master’s Thesis in one of our areas of research expertise: Discrete Mathematics, Analysis and PDE theory, Financial Mathematical, Numerical Analysis and Computational Mathematics, Mathematical Modelling of Evolution and Biological Phenomena, Machine Learning, Optimisation and Mathematical Programming, Data Science and Mathematical Statistics.

Read more about the programme

Why Umeå?

The programme's greatest draw is its close connection to the life of the research groups in the department, which we hope you will take full advantage of. As a student on the programme, you will be able to work on research and thesis projects with some of our young and highly successful researchers, and to use the mentoring system as a gateway into the world of research.

In this digital age, mathematical skills are in high demand across the economy. In addition some of our core, profile and elective courses, and much of our research, lie in exciting "hot topic" areas such as network science, modelling, financial mathematics, numerical analysis, artificial intelligence and big data. The employment prospects of our graduates are thus excellent.

A young city with rich cultural life

Finally, Umeå provides a highly attractive environment for studying. It is a young and fast growing city of around 120 000 inhabitants, of whom over 35 000 are students. This makes for a rich cultural life, with many pubs, cafés, restaurants, concerts and festivals. The city is home to Norrlands Opera and to Bildmuseet, a museum of contemporary art and visual culture. In 2014, Umeå shared with Riga the distinction of being the European capital of culture.

The city is small, extremely safe and well-run, with an extensive network of bicycle paths allowing its denizens to cycle all year round. It is surrounded by beautiful nature – from the Umeå river, which freezes over in winter and becomes criss-crossed with cross-country skiing tracks, to Nydala lake and the Gammlia forest within the city limits, and to the vast and largely unspoiled countryside of forests, lakes and seashore just outside it. And of course studying in Umeå allows you to experience the Swedish way of life, with its well-delineated seasons and traditions, from Sankta Lucia in the dark of December to Midsommar in the overflowing light of June, with coffee and cinnamon buns throughout.

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Umeå University was founded in 1965 and is Sweden's fifth oldest university. Today, we have a strong international and multicultural presence with students, teachers and researchers from all over the world. As one of the leading comprehensive universities in the nation, we are alive with enthusiasm, creativity and fresh ideas.

We constantly strive towards being one of Scandinavia and Europe's best environments for education , research and community engagement that meets the challenges of an ever-increasing global society.