University of Rochester Mathematical Olympiad

URMO

The University of Rochester Mathematical Olympiad (URMO) is an annual mathematics competition for undergraduates in Western New York. The URMO is organized by Dr. Dan-Andrei Geba of the University of Rochester. However, each participating college or university administers the contest on its own campus. Participants take the exam individually. The URMO occurs on a Saturday during the spring. The first Olympiad was given on March 31, 2007 and involved Rochester, Cornell, RIT, Nazareth, SUNY Brockport, and St. Bonaventure.

The University of Rochester Mathematical Olympiad was created to be a challenging competition, but friendlier than the Putnam Exam. (The Putnam Exam, an annual competition open to undergraduates in the United States and Canada, is widely regarded as the most challenging undergraduate math competition in America.) Based on the first Olympiad, the University of Rochester has succeeded admirably. The URMO is a three-hour exam consisting of four problems. (By contrast, the Putnam is a six-hour exam consisting of twelve problems.) Two of the problems are below Putnam level and two are at Putnam level. Of the two problems at Putnam level, one is at the level of the first one or two problems on a Putnam exam and one is at the level of the middle Putnam problems. Like the Putnam, the URMO tests both technical competence in undergraduate mathematics and problem-solving skills. Three prizes are awarded: first prize is $250, second prize is $200, and third prize is $150.

As a practical matter, students should have taken Calculus II (Math 152) and Discrete Mathematics I (Math 207) before attempting the URMO.  

The URMO is administered at SBU by Dr. Hill (De La Roche 102, chill@sbu.edu). Students will be alerted in mathematics classes and by email when the date of the next URMO is known. Bona’s students who participate in the URMO will be treated to lunch at the Beef-n-Barrel Restaurant immediately after the contest. Free copies of the 2007 URMO may be found in the "Resources" bookcase in the Mathematics Suite (De La Roche 102). The 2007 Olympiad is also available as a pdf file here. Early in the fall semester, the SBU Student Chapter of the MAA sponsors a URMO Free-For-All, which is an informal discussion of the problems on the previous Olympiad.

The Problem-Solving Seminar (Math 281), offered during the fall semester, prepares students to take the URMO and the Putnam Exam. In this one-credit course, techniques of mathematical problem-solving are studied and applied to a wide range of problems (including problems from previous Putnam Exams). The prerequisites for Math 281 are Calculus II (Math 152) and Discrete Mathematics I (Math 207). Math 281 may be repeated for credit.