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Honours in the School of Mathematics and Statistics

General Information

This page contains brief information on Honours Programs in the School of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Sydney.

Our School offers four honours programs:

  • Applied Mathematics
  • Financial Mathematics and Statistics
  • Pure Mathematics
  • Statistics
In addition, the school also administers the honours program in Data Science. In all cases, assessment is by a combination of coursework (50%) and a project (50%). For more details please consult and our honours program overview document and the various handbooks.

While the school's research groups offer courses separately, the honours programs are flexible and students are encouraged to consult their program coordinator if they are interested in taking a course from another discipline.

For example, the unit of study DATA5441 could be used in any of our honours programs.

Lists of the lecture units offered in 2024 by Applied Mathematics, Pure Mathematics and Statistics appear below.

Students should be aware of the University's plagiarism policy.

Students have the right to appeal any academic decision made by the School or Faculty. For further information, see the Science Faculty web site.

Announcements

The school's annual the Honours Information Session

Ever wondered what research is like? Are you interested in learning more about topics that excited you while studying with us at the School of Math & Stats? If so, you should consider doing honours in one of the four programs we offer.

You can learn more about our honours program in general, and about our specific programs by attending our school's annual Honours Information Session on Thursday 26/9/2024 at 5pm in F10A Law Annex Seminar Room 340.

We strongly recommend you attend the session in person (for example, you can talk to potential supervisors and fellow students while enjoying pizzas at the end of the session) but for those who cannot make it you can join remotely by registering to the Zoom session via this link.

Worried about not having two majors? Don't be!

If you are not on track to qualify for two majors before starting your Honours studies then you should apply for BSc (Honours).

Enrolment advice

Enrolment advice, FAQs and Student Policies can be found on the School of Mathematics and Statistics Student Portal, on the Canvas website, or on the Enrolment Advice page on this server.

Master of Mathematical Sciences

Information about this postgraduate degree can be found on the page https://sydney.edu.au/courses/courses/pc/master-of-mathematical-sciences.html

Applying for Honours

When applying for Honours through the faculty of science web interface you will be asked to upload a "proof of contact" / "expression of interest" document. For this purpose, please download and fill the School's Expression of Interest form.

Please keep in mind the Faculty of Science honours application deadlines (15/1 for semester 1 and 25/6 for semester 2).

The university offers some scholarships, see the scholarship information for honours students for details.

In particular potential students from other states should be aware of the Honours Relocation Scholarship. This scholarship valued at $6000 is to facilitate students from interstate enrolling in an honours degree in the Faculty of Science at the University of Sydney by assisting to defray costs incurred in moving interstate in order to enrol in the honours year. The student must have a minimum SCIWAM of 80 and with the current terms must be moving from outside of NSW. See the Faculty of Science honours scholarships information page.

Program Coordinators

The following people are available to discuss the honours program.

  person   office   phone   email
Marek Rutkowski
(applied, financial)		 Carslaw 814 9351 1923 am4coord@maths.usyd.edu.au
Clara Grazian
(data science)		 Carslaw 822 9351 ???? ds4coord@maths.usyd.edu.au
Laurentiu Paunescu
(pure)		 Carslaw 721 9351 2969 pm4coord@maths.usyd.edu.au
Uri Keich
(statistics)		 Carslaw 821 9351 2307 st4coord@maths.usyd.edu.au

Handbooks

The handbooks contain detailed information including assessment details, important dates, course outlines, an outline of the project requirement including a list of possible projects and supervisors. Students should ensure they have a copy of the relevant handbook.

You should start with a general overview of the Honours Program. Then, for more details, consult the handbooks for Honours in Applied Mathematics (2024, 2025), Financial Mathematics and Statistics (2024, 2025), Pure Mathematics (2024, 2025), Statistics (2023, 2025), Data Science (2024, 2025).

Resources

University of Sydney Honours Scholarships

These $6,000 Honours Scholarships are awarded annually on the basis of academic merit and personal attributes such as leadership and creativity.

Writing proficiency

The honours essay is also assessed based on the quality of the writing. This does not mean we look for the next Shakespeare, but you should make sure you express your ideas in an organized manner using a clear and grammatically correct English. The university offers several resources that can help you achieve this goal. The Learning Centre offers workshops for students that need help with extended written work, and a trove of online resources for improving your writing skills is also available. Make sure you make use of these resources as early as possible as writing skills develop slowly over time and with much practice.

Tips for your seminar

The handbooks contain advice on how you should prepare and give your talk, as will your supervisor and your honours coordinator. In addition, you may find the following Seminar advice and Seminar advice summary useful.

Honours Lecture Courses

Following is a list of honours courses offered by the divisions of Applied Mathematics, Pure Mathematics and Statistics. Students in Mathematics may also take advanced third year units – see the Senior Mathematics page for a list of these. Consult your program coordinator if you are interested in taking a course from another division.

Applied Mathematics

   First Semester

   Second Semester

Financial Mathematics

   First Semester

   Second Semester

Pure Mathematics

   First Semester

   Second Semester

Statistics

   First Semester

   Second Semester

Students are advised to check the courses offered in January at the AMSI Summer School and also courses available via the Advanced Collaborative Environment (ACE). Taking any of these courses for credit requires permission to enrol in the unit AMSI4001.

More detailed information about courses and assessment can be obtained from the relevant handbook or program coordinator.