Indian Women and Mathematics
January 8-9-10, 2011 at IMSc, Chennai
The mornings will have research level expository talks by senior women mathamaticians.
The afternoons will have post-doc talks and Panel discussions.
On the first afternoon, we will have (parallel) group discussions on specific areas of mathematics and
applications. Each group will have around 20 participants. The group
leader will make a 40-minute
presentation and the participants will later have the opportunity to interact closely with the senior
women
mathematicians.
On the second afternoon, there will be a Panel discussion meeting. The Panelists will talk about the
challenges they have faced and offer advice on the various practical aspects of doing a Ph.D in mathematics,
getting the first postdoctoral position, a permanent position and on the importance of training the
next generation of mathematicians. Having role models and mentors/peer group is
critical for success and the
panel will explore ways to set up effective mentoring programs. There will be presentations on Funding
opportunities, and training programmes for students and teachers.
It is hoped
that concrete suggestions will be made which can be pursued.
The third afternoon will be devoted to mathematics and the corporate world.
The number of career options for students with advanced degrees in mathematics is growing rapidly. We
will have a session which is devoted to the theme of
"Mathematics and jobs in the corporate world".
This session will focus two or three people from industry and applied areas who will explain the kinds
of mathematical skills that are needed for instance, in the financial sector and
Computational mathematics.