A Study of Undergraduate Programs in the Mathematical and Statistical Sciences in the United States and the Publication of the Results

American Mathematical Society, Providence RI

Investigators

Abstract

With NSF support and with sponsorship from the Conference Board of the Mathematical Sciences (CBMS), the CBMS2005 project will be the ninth in a sequence of quinquennial surveys and reports that provide comprehensive national data on the undergraduate mathematical sciences in departments ranging from two-year to doctoral. Professional society reports have emphasized the need for better data on the nation's undergraduate mathematical sciences programs in order to allow leaders at every level from local departments to national agencies to assess existing activities, to plan future growth, and to be effective advocates for their programs. Based on a carefully designed CBMS2005 survey of the nation's undergraduate mathematical sciences programs, the CBMS2005 project will address that need through published reports of the most detailed and reliable data on the nation's undergraduate mathematical sciences. CBMS2005 will continue long-term cross-sectional studies initiated in previous CBMS reports, and will investigate special topics proposed by professional society committees as being particularly important today. These special topics are likely to include: the mathematical preparation of K-8 teachers; the impact of reform movements on undergraduate curriculum, pedagogy, and technology use; the growth of ``dual enrollment'' as a way for advanced high school students to get college credit while still in high school; faculty diversity and educational background; the shift from permanent to temporary faculty noted in the CBMS2000 report; and comparison of availability of advanced courses for mathematics majors in various types of four-year colleges and universities. CBMS2005 will involve an unprecedented level of cooperation between members of the project steering committee (who come from nine different universities); the Joint Data Committee of the AMS, ASA, IMS, and MAA; committees of various professional societies; and statisticians at the University of North Carolina.