Question: How many courses should I choose in each semester?
Answer: In addition to the annual Master's Thesis (18 credits), in almost all cases one should choose 3 courses in the first semester (24 credits) and 3 in the second one (18 credits) in order to take exactly 60 credits in total, due to differences in the number of credits. Except in the special cases of external course recognition, none of the advanced seminars should be selected since these subjects do not have any teaching associated with them.
Q: What courses should I mark on the pre-registration sheet?
A: The 6 chosen courses (three per semester) plus the Master's Thesis (MT). Please do not mark more than 6 coourses + MT. You can select fewer courses should you intend to complete the master over an extended period, for example, in 3 or 4 semesters. (In this case, please remember that you must select at least 24 credits during the first year.)
Q: What can I do if, due to a computer incompatibility, I cannot download or open the pre-registration sheet from the Centre of Graduate Studies (CEP in Spanish) webpage?
A: It is sufficient to prepare a .doc or .pdf file with the complete list of selected subjects (up to 3 per semester + the MT) and upload it instead.
Q: I am interested in broadening my knowledge. Besides the MT and the 6 courses required, can I enroll into other courses officially?
A: No, it is not possible to take more than 60 credits. The Dean’s Office will not approve of it.
Q: I want to study this master part-time (so as to finish it in two years, for example). What is the minimum number of credits per year in which I must enroll?
A: Minimum 24 credits per year (until a situation is reached where there are less than 24 to finish the master, which is when the restriction stops applying). For example, you can take two courses from the first semester and two from the second in one year (28 credits) and the rest plus the MT (32 credits) in the second year. Alternatively, you can take three courses in the first semester only during your first year.
Q: What is the difference between the first-semester courses and those in the second semester?
A: The former ones are considered basic while the latter deal with more advanced or applied topics.
Q: Does the course offer vary from year to year?
A: Usually all courses are offered every year, except when in the previous year the minimum number of students (five) was not reached. Some of the applied subjects may not be offerred all the time. Thus, some variations in this sense may occur from time to time.
Q: Do the contents of the courses vary from year to year?
A: The ones in the first semester usually have the same content, without substantial variations. However, when the content is extensive, a choice of topics is usually offered at the discretion of the professor. The second-semester courses can vary completely from one year to another.
Q: When will the courses offered for the next academic year and the teachers that will teach them be known?
A: Usually, courses for the academic year beginning in September of a given year will be approved in March of the same year approximately, and then the list of subjects and teachers who will teach them will be published first on the websites of the Department of Mathematics and of the Faculty of Sciences around the month of April.
Q: I have enrolled a course. Does that guarantee that it will be taught?
A: No. There must be a minimum of 4 or 5 students enrolled in it. In no case will a course be taught with only one or two enrolled students. The coordinator will try to organize as uniform a distribution as possible at the beginning of each semester in order to ensure that a maximum number of courses be taught, always respecting the preferences of the students.
Q: Once the semester has started, can I make enrollment changes? Is this free or does it include an additional fee?
A: It is possible to cancel the enrollment in one course and enroll in another. For this, an authorization of the Master's Program coordinator is required and an application must be submitted to the Dean’s Office. At the beginning of each semester, there is a short period (approximately, during the first three weeks) to make such changes without additional payment.
Q: How is the grading done in each course?
A: It depends on the semester and the course. This information is specified in the teaching guides. In the first semester, a combination of problem sheets, exams and presentations (oral or written) are usually used. In the second semester, often only term papers are presented (orally and in writing). Sometimes solutions to exercises should be handed in during the term and these may also count.
Q: If I fail a course, will I have another chance?
A: Yes, for each course there is an extraordinary exam, typically in June. If a course is failed on both occasions, it is possible to enroll again in the same course during the next academic year (with an increased registration fee).