'The Winter School Is What Led to My Firm Decision to Go to HSE'

On February 4-8 of next year, the Faculty of Mathematics is hosting a Winter School at Voronovo, a special conference centre in the Moscow region with lodging and recreational facilities.

The Schools are aimed at individuals who are thinking of applying to one of HSE’s master’s programmes and who want to get first-hand experience with what graduate study at HSE entails. This is why the educational portion of all Winter Schools includes presentations by the various faculties on their master’s programmes, as well as discussions with faculty staff.

The Winter School hosted by the Faculty of Mathematics also features various lectures and presentations. Key lecturers include the Dean of the Faculty of Mathematics, Vladlen Timorin, who will talk about ‘Dynamics and Fractals’; International Laboratory of Representation Theory and Mathematical Physics researcher Ian Marshall, whose topic is Music and Mathematics; another International Laboratory of Representation Theory and Mathematical Physics researcher, Alexander Bufetof, who will discuss tessellations and Markov processes; and many more. A full list of lectures can be found on the School’s website. The Winter Schools will also host informal discussions on mathematics education around the world and current problems in mathematics.

In addition, under the guidance of their instructors, Winter School participants will be able to practice taking the entrance exams required for the faculty’s master’s programme. The School will showcase the Mathematics programme, of which Yuly Ilyashenko is the Academic Supervisor, and the Mathematical Physics programme, whose supervisor is Igor Krichever.

Arthur Gilmullin, Mathematics and Mathematical Physics Student

I found out about the School from a former participant. To be honest, if it hadn’t been for him, I would have never thought that such schools exist for people who are applying to master’s programmes. I figured it’s worth a shot. At the time, a fair number of the people I knew from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology had studied in various HSE programmes, and I already had a decent idea of what and how they taught in the faculty. Also, just talking with the faculty’s professors made a huge impression on me. They are great.

Who is the Winter School good for? For those who want to study in the Mathematics Faculty, of course. Every math faculty in the world is unique (at least in regards to their size compared with other faculties), and the Winter School allows you to get an idea of exactly what awaits you in the field.

Several participants at the School were worried they didn’t have an adequate background in mathematics. I can say you shouldn’t worry about this – those gaps in knowledge get filled in. The main thing is to want to work. I also recommend making the best use of your time at the school, and for example, not sit in your room every evening after your daily schedule is over.

I made the firm decision of going specifically to HSE while I was at the Winter School. Really, it almost dissuaded me from applying for the Mathematics and Mathematical Physics programme since I had started thinking about applying for an alternative programme in the faculty.

Of course, it’s impossible to prepare for entrance exams in the three or four days that the School takes place, but no one made this their goal. I learned about a ton of formalities like the day the Olympiad and exams take place, as well as the overall application procedure. I also did prep work for the Olympiad, which gave me a certain sense of psychological and moral support.

To learn more about other HSE Winter Schools for those applying to the university’s master’s programmes, please visit the Winter Schools’ general website.