Master's Programme in Mathematics

While studying

You will be part of a human-sized Master's programme and Mathematics department, giving the possibility for richer and more personal interactions between students and teachers. All incoming Master students are assigned a mentor from one of our three main research groups – Discrete Mathematics, Analysis and Modelling, and Computational Mathematics. 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

Beyond the programme's core courses and thesis projects, there is a great flexibility about choosing courses both from mathematics and from closely related fields such as computer science and statistics. 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 Italy, France, Spain, the UK, China, South Korea and Kazakhstan as part of their studies.

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.

Read more about the Department and Umeå University

Programme overview

Career opportunities

Graduates of a Master’s programme in mathematics have a wide range of opportunities available to them. Mathematicians and mathematical skills are highly sought-after in finance and in IT, for example, and in research and development more generally. And of course our master’s programme is a natural springboard for entering a PhD programme and pursuing a career in research within academia.