Math undergraduates excel in Putnam Competition
03-01-2024
Results from the 84th William Lowell Putnam Mathematical Competition® put Purdue University in the top ten percent of participating universities in the United States and Canada.
The preeminent mathematics competition for undergraduate students in North America included more than 5000 students from more than 500 colleges and universities.
The combined scores of mathematics students William Lin, Lingjie Fang and Sukrith Raman totaled 89 points, putting Purdue in 50th place. Additionally, William Lin’s score of 33 points earned him a spot in the top 500 individual scores. All three students are majoring in mathematics and computer science.Associate professor of mathematics, Victor Lie, explained that the median score on the exam is zero. “Scoring a positive number on this examination is quite an achievement and speaks to the merit of our students.”
Purdue mathematics students have consistently performed well in this competition. Professor Lie notes an upward trend in the overall placement. “In the past six years, Purdue’s Putnam team has been ranked twice in top 70, twice in top 60 and now, twice in top 50. This result isn’t just one event but rather a sustained and consistent progress.”
The Putnam Competition occurs annually on the first Saturday of December. The competition consists of two 3-hour sessions, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. During each session, participants work individually on six challenging mathematical problems.