Those students who wish to continue work toward a Ph.D. degree must take a written examination called the Preliminary Examination. The examination will be given twice each year, once before the start of the Fall Semester, and once before the start of the Spring Semester. For students entering with a Bachelor's degree, it is required that the Prelim Exam be passed by the beginning of the fourth semester of study. The two part examination is given as a set, only the part not passed needs to be repeated. Students who failed to pass the Prelim Exam by the beginning of the fourth semester will be asked to leave the graduate program.
There are two examinations, the first covering the content of M600 and M602 (Advanced Calculus), and second comprising the content of M672 (Linear Algebra).
The syllabus to be covered by each examination is included in the following. Please obtain copies of past examinations and a more detailed syllabus from the Graduate Program Secretary in 501 Ewing Hall. Note also that the references cited on the following pages are intended to indicate the material to be covered. It is not necessarily intended that the student study all the references.