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Our standard graduate courses are offered on a two-year cycle, with students typically taking two classes each semester for their first two years. After that, students usually begin working with their research advisors on an individual basis and/or as part of a research seminar. Course descriptions follow, below.

Two-Year Sequence in Introductory Graduate Study

Beginning Fall Semester of an Even Year:

Math 501: Graduate Analysis I
Math 502: Graduate Analysis II
Math 512: Topology*
Math 525: Algebraic Topology

Beginning Fall Semester of an Odd Year:

Math 503: Graduate Algebra I
Math 504: Graduate Algebra II
Math 522: Complex Analysis*
Math 530: Differential Topology

Graduate students whom we admit based on their strengths and our belief that they are a good fit for our program, but who lack the needed background for succeeding in our graduate courses, may spend up to one year taking advanced undergraduate courses, with additional work, as appropriate. Example courses include:

Math 302: Real Analysis II
Math 304: Abstract Algebra II

Advanced graduate students may enroll in certain upper-level undergraduate courses, as is appropriate to their their research topics. Graduate students complete additional work in these courses. Example courses include:

Math 311: Partial Differential Equations
Math 390: Algebraic Number Theory

Students pursuing an M.A. degree before the Ph.D. work with an advisor in either of the following, each semester. Similarly, students who have completed the introductory courses, pass their preliminary exams, then focus on independent research with their dissertation advisory in either of the following.

Math 701: Supervised Work
Math 702: Research Seminar
      
When appropriate, students may also enroll in courses at the University of Pennsylvania.

Course Descriptions

MATH 302 Introduction to Real Analysis II
This course is the second semester of a year-long sequence in real analysis covering the real number system, elements of set theory and topology, continuous and differentiable functions, uniform convergence, the Riemann integral, power series, Fourier series and other limit processes.

MATH 304 Abstract Algebra II
This course is the second semester of a year-long sequence in abstract algebra covering groups, rings, and fields, and their homomorphisms; quotient groups, quotient rings, and the isomorphism theorems. Standard examples including symmetric groups, free groups, and finitely generated abelian groups; integral domains, PID's and UFD's, and polynomial rings; finite and infinite fields; Sylow theory and field extensions. Additional topics may include: Galois theory, modules and canonical forms of matrices, algebraic closures, and localization.

MATH 311 Partial Differential Equations
Heat and wave equations on bounded and unbounded domains, Laplace's equation, Fourier series and the Fourier transform, qualitative behavior of solutions, computational methods. Applications to the physical and life sciences.

MATH 512 Topology
General topology (topological spaces, continuity, compactness, connectedness, quotient spaces), the fundamental group and covering spaces, introduction to geometric topology (classification of surfaces, manifolds).

MATH 522 Functions of Complex Variables
Analytic functions, Cauchy's theorem, Laurent series, calculus of residues, conformal mappings, Moebius transformations.

MATH 390 Algebraic Number Theory
Algebraic number fields and rings of integers, quadratic and cyclotomic fields, norm and trace, ideal theory, factorization and prime decomposition, lattices and the geometry of algebraic integers, class numbers and ideal class groups, computational methods, Dirichlet's unit theorem. 

MATH 501 and 502 Graduate Real Analysis I and II
In these courses we study the theory of measure and integration. Topics include Lebesgue measure, measurable functions, the Lebesgue integral, the Riemann-Stieltjes integral, complex measures, differentiation of measures, product measures, and L^p spaces.

MATH 503 and 504 Graduate Algebra I and II
This is a two course sequence providing a standard introduction to algebra at the graduate level. Topics in the first semester include categories, groups, rings, and modules. Topics in the second semester will include linear algebra, fields, Galois theory, and advanced group theory. 

MATH 525 Algebraic Topology
Math 525 offers an introduction to topology at the graduate level, and can be taken in either order. Math 525 covers the basic notions of algebraic topology. The focus is on homology theory, which is introduced axiomatically, via the Eilenberg-Steenrod axioms, and then studied from a variety of points of view (simplicial, singular and cellular). The course also treats cohomology theory, duality on manifolds, and the elements of homotopy theory.

MATH 530 Differential Topology
Math 530 focuses on differential topology. Topics covered include smooth manifolds and smooth maps, transversality and intersection theory, differential forms, and integration on manifolds.