Mathematical Contest in Modeling 2019

The Mathematical Contest in Modeling (MCM) challenges three-person undergraduate teams to design and communicate rigorous mathematical solutions to real-world problems.

This international contest is held each winter. This winter it is January 24 – 28, 2019.

What is it like?

You compete in teams of three. (You can form your own team, or the math club can match-make.) On Thursday evening, 6 problems are released. Your team picks one problem to solve. Over the next 4 days (until Monday afternoon), your team must

Create a mathematical model that fits the problem
Work with the model to find solutions
Write up your work in a full technical report and nontechnical executive summary

This contest is intense (it consumes most of your weekend), but lots of fun and highly rewarding. It’s also great practice for many career paths, including those in government, industry, and academia. (Though it’s “applied” math, it’s still great practice if you prefer “pure” math.)

What else is involved?

While you can register on your own (you just need a faculty member to sign you up), there are some benefits to registering through the math club.

We are working with various departments to cover the registration fee ($100 per team)
We organize practices in the weeks leading up to the contest
We hold a post-contest presentation night, where your team presents your solution

Sample problems

See https://www.comap.com/undergraduate/contests/mcm/previous-contests.php.