Nebraska IMMERSE

Nebraska IMMERSE was the centerpiece of the department's MCTP program from 2005 to 2015. IMMERSE had two interweaving components: one that strengthened the preparation of students who were about to enter their first year of graduate study in mathematics (these students were referred to as "pre-grads") and one that developed the teaching, research and mentoring skills of graduate students and early career faculty.

The dates for the final 2015 IMMERSE program were:

The IMMERSE participants were grouped as follows:

• 16 pre-grads: Students who were starting graduate school in mathematics, either at UNL or elsewhere, the following fall. Pre-grad participants received room, board, a travel allowance and a $3,600 stipend.
• 6 UNL graduate students: Three of these students would have just finished their first year of graduate school while the other three were beginning their final year of graduate study.
• 2 early career faculty: Young mathematics faculty who were employed at colleges or universities that did not have doctoral programs in mathematics. These participants received room, board, a travel allowance and a $11,000 stipend.

Structure

Mentoring at Nebraska IMMERSE was vertically integrated: the early career faculty were mentored by senior UNL faculty, the graduate students were mentored by each other and the early career faculty, and the pre-grads were mentored by the early career faculty and the graduate students.

For the pre-grads, the main component of the program consisted of two intensive courses: one in algebra and one in analysis. The courses were at the advanced undergraduate/ beginning graduate level. However, rather than working through a textbook, the courses were structured around the reading of research papers. The IMMERSE course coordinators (two UNL faculty) selected papers that use, as tools, some of the topics that typically appear in first-year graduate algebra and analysis courses, and then structured the IMMERSE courses around the material of the papers. Each course was taught by one early career faculty member, with a mixed group of three first-year and advanced graduate students serving as teaching assistants. There were several special presentations/colloquiums/workshops throughout the six weeks, which provided additional forums for exploring issues the pre-grads were likely to face as they began graduate school. We had at least two guest speakers, each of whom gave an overview of current research topics in his/her mathematical area.

As stated above, the program for the graduate students and early career faculty began approximately two weeks prior to the start of the IMMERSE courses. At the time of their arrival, the early career faculty and graduate students worked with the course coordinators to finalize their plans for the six-week courses. (The early career faculty and the course coordinators began planning these courses during the Spring 2015 semester.) Additionally, each early career faculty participant had a research mentor in the form of a senior UNL faculty member. Over the course of the eight weeks, the early career faculty worked with their research mentors to identify and begin work on a joint research project. The collaboration was expected to carry over into the next academic year via e-mail and research visits. (An additional travel allowance for this purpose was given to the early career faculty partipants.)

Participant Selection

Pre-grads

Any U.S. citizen or permanent resident who intends to begin graduate study in mathematics, in the U.S. in the fall of 2015, was eligible for the program. Selection was based on transcripts, letters of recommendation, and a personal essay on what the applicant hopes to gain from the program. Applications for the 2015 program were due on March 15, 2015, with notification given by early April.

2014 Nebraska IMMERSE poster

Graduate student mentors

These UNL students are the recipients of the MCTP graduate traineeships.

Early career faculty

These participants were selected based on the applicants' qualifications and potential to benefit from the program. In particular, preference was given to applicants whose research interests lie in the research areas of one or more UNL faculty members. Candidates for the early career faculty position had to:

• be U.S. citizens, nationals or permanent residents;
• have earned a doctoral degree;
• be employed in a tenure-track (or equivalent) position as an assistant professor (or equivalent title) in a non-doctoral-granting mathematics department at an institution in the U.S., its territories, possessions or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico;
• be untenured.