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Duke University, Department of Mathematics

Program ID:
Duke-MATH2026 [#1866]
Program Title:
Math+ 2026
Program Type:
Undergraduate program
Program Location:
Durham, North Carolina 27708-0320, United States of America
Subject Area:
Mathematics
Appl Deadline:
2026/02/15 11:59PMhelp popup
Program Description:
   

program Description

Math+ is a full-time 8 week program for collaborative student summer research in all areas of mathematics. This program is open to all current undergraduate students at Duke University and North Carolina Central University; if you are a student at another institution, please do not apply as your application will not be read. We particularly encourage women and underrepresented minorities to apply. (For NCCU students, there are a couple of questions that are Duke-specific; please just leave these blank.)

Math+ 2025 runs from May 18 until July 10, 2026. The program consists of groups of typically 3-4 undergraduate students working together on a single project. Each team will be led by a faculty mentor (or two) assisted by a graduate student.

Participants will receive a $4,000 stipend, out of which they must arrange their own housing and travel (if applicable). There will likely be an option for on-campus room and board, with a lower stipend. Participants may not accept other employment or take classes during the program. Funding and infrastructure support are primarily provided by Duke's Department of Mathematics, the Rhodes Information Initiative at Duke (iiD), and the Office of the Dean of Academic Affairs.

The application deadline is February 15, 2026, but we will consider late applications until all slots are filled. Teams are expected to be finalized by mid to late March but this is not guaranteed. We expect to notify applicants about the decision by email by the end of March.

There are 5 teams planned for summer 2026 in the numbered list below. As part of the application, you will list the number(s) of the projects that you would like to apply for; for each of your choice of projects, we ask you to provide a short explanation of why you have chosen it and how you feel you could contribute to it.

Here is the list of project titles and faculty mentors. Please see the Math+ 2026 web site for full descriptions of each project.
  1. Large deviations of means on stratified metric spaces, led by Professor Nicholas Cook
  2. Stochastic Burgers equations on compact manifolds, led by Professor Alex Dunlap
  3. Diffusion maps to understand redistrictings (and graph partitions), led by Professors Gregory Herschlag and Biji Wong
  4. Computational algebraic number theory with geometric applications, led by Professors Farid HosseiniJafari and Colleen Robles
  5. Comparing distances between hierarchical clustering structures, led by Professor Ling Zhou
For questions about Math+ 2026, please email the program co-directors, Professors Heekyoung Hahn (heekyoung.hahn@duke.edu) and Lenny Ng (lenhard.ng@duke.edu). 

    Application Materials Required:
    Submit the following items online at this website to complete your application:
    • Curriculum Vitae
    • Transcript (a copy of your online transcript from DukeHub is sufficient)
    • One paragraph (per project chosen) about how you can contribute to the project.
    • Project choice (indicate by numbers in ranked order; max of four)
    And anything else requested in the program description.

    Further Info:
    https://math.duke.edu/mathplus/2026
    email address
     
    Mathematics Department
    Duke University, Box 90320
    Durham, NC 27708-0320