7 February 2019- The African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) and the University of Minnesota (UMN) today announce a new partnership for knowledge exchange and to accelerate opportunities for talented African mathematicians. Founded in 2003, AIMS recruits Africa’s most talented university graduates and provides them with the cutting-edge training in mathematics they need to enter technical professions or to pursue graduate studies in technical and scientific fields.
“At AIMS, we are always looking to partner with like-minded institutions, and we are pleased to announce this partnership with the University of Minnesota, a prestigious research university,” said Professor Barry Green, Chief Academic and Research Officer of AIMS. “Given our ambitions to become one of the leading mathematical sciences research institutes in the world, this is a welcome partnership. We are particularly looking forward to all the opportunities this will afford our alumni and researchers.”
The new agreement will bring the UMN faculty members and graduate students as lecturers and tutors to AIMS campuses across Africa. UMN faculty will also join the AIMS academic department in the development of curriculum and experimental program content, and scholars from both the AIMS and UMN will work together on joint research and future academic collaborations. This important partnership will also help support qualified AIMS students to apply to the UMN graduate programs.
“Our mathematics programs need to think globally to recruit and educate the best people worldwide for the greatest impact,” said Professor Peter Olver, head of the University of Minnesota School of Mathematics and 2005 AIMS teaching participant in Cape Town, South Africa. “In many respects, Africa is the largest untapped market of students and talent. This program will allow the University of Minnesota a toe-hold that could pay big dividends down the road.” The University of Minnesota expects to send a faculty and grad student as soon as the 2019-20 academic year.
About AIMS
Founded in 2003, the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) is a Pan-African network of centres of excellence for post-graduate training, research and public engagement in mathematical sciences. The AIMS network has five centres of excellence teaching a Masters in Mathematical Sciences, including a co-operative option with a direct link to industry in three centres. The network also includes research centres and programs with 90 researchers including prestigious Chairs currently across the network. In Cameroon and Rwanda, AIMS is runs a gender-responsive teacher training program. As well, AIMS created two critical initiatives: Quantum Leap Africa to prepare Africa for the coming quantum revolution, and the Next Einstein Forum to propel Africa on to the global scientific stage.
About the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is the state’s land-grant university and one of the most prestigious public research universities in the United States. It has the sixth-largest student body in the United States with 50,943 students in 2018-19. The University of Minnesota is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. The University of Minnesota’s School of Mathematics continually ranks among the top university mathematics programs in the U.S. and worldwide.