The participants were asked to comment on various aspects of the program. Below are quotations from students' responses, reproduced with their permissions.
The seminar was one of the best, I loved it. We covered some material that, I believe, every math student (and possible future mathematician) has to know about. It was very diverse, while deep enough to really understand things.
Maziar Farahzad, MASS 2017
To be honest, I have never been more stressed in my life. This program pushed me beyond what I thought I could handle, and I think this will be great for my future as a student and mathematician. Seeing all of this beautiful math throughout the semester augmented my love for the subject and made it crystal clear to me that I want to go to grad school and pursue a PhD.
Connor Cassady, MASS 2016
This program has made me realize I am extremely happy being a math major and look forward to attending graduate school for a Ph.D. in mathematics.
Matthew Litman, MASS 2015
These were without question the most fascinating, engaging, and deeply satisfying mathematical courses I have ever taken... The MASS program is without question the pinnacle of my mathematical career to date.
William Noland, MASS 2015
Math used to be one of my interests; after MASS program, it's my career and job, and I definitely will chose mathematics in graduate school... MASS program is a critical point of my life, and I will always be grateful to this program and people here.
Chen Cai, MASS 2014
Attending the MASS program is undoubtedly a highlight of my years as an undergraduate.
Loren Anderson, MASS 2014
I plan on going back to my home institution and telling anyone interested in grad school that they need to apply for this program... I can only hope to inspire others as I have been inspired here.
Jason Green, MASS 2014
MASS program is an experience like no other you will receive as an undergraduate.
Crystal Peoples, MASS 2011
This program has had a great impact on me. It has fully introduced me to the reality of the work involved to succeed at advanced mathematics.
Mary Russell, MASS 2011
The absolute best part about this program was the mathematical confidence I now have. I am no longer afraid of complicated mathematics, and I have gained extreme confidence in myself.
Sean Al-Gattas, MASS 2011
The MASS program is one of the hardest things I have ever done, but I would recommend it to anyone. Looking back, I am shocked at the amount and breadth of the mathematics I've learned in such a short amount of time...
Anna Lischke, MASS 2011
MASS program is one of the most exciting programs I have ever attended. This program enhances my interests in mathematics. It also makes me realize what I need to improve in mathematics.
Haining Wang, MASS 2009
This semester has transformed my mathematical knowledge into some new beast. I learned more math here than I have been learning for the past three years.
My Huymn, MASS 2009
It was by far the most intense thing I have ever done... Funny thing about this program, you are always working, non-stop. It's the hardest I've ever had to work in a semester.
A MASS 2009 participant who wished to remain anonymous
I thoroughly enjoyed the MASS Program (as is probably evidenced by the fact that I did everything possible to attend the program for the second time).
Kaloyan Marinov, MASS 2008 and 2009
The MASS program provided me with opportunities that I would have never received at my home school. It has made me a better student of mathematics by pushing me to levels I had never been pushed to before.
Jonathan Root, MASS 2008
The final structure is fantastic: it really forces you to completely solidify your knowledge in a way that a written test doesn't.
Sean Howe, MASS 2008
The MASS program made me a better mathematician and introduced me to research, but it also made me a better person. It made me more disciplined, more willing to work hard, gave me a true desire for learning, and made me new friends.
Michael Harrison, MASS 2008
I liked the program very much and I would recommend it to anybody who is considering going to graduate school in mathematics.
Valentin Zakharevich, MASS 2008
It would not be wrong to say that this one Semester has changed my life completely. […] Most importantly, MASS has infused in me love for learning. As for character building, MASS immerses you in extremely hard topics that at the begining seem impossible to learn, but by the end of the program you have a command over these topics and you feel more confident about youself and about your learning abilities. MASS will always remind me of Nietzche's qoute "that which does not kill you will only make you stronger."
Shehryar Sikander, MASS 2007
The logistics were fantastic[…] The people involved in MASS should be proud of how well the students are treated. Thank you.
Daniel Volmar, MASS 2006
MASS has been an eye-opening semester of exploration and growth. In my entire academic career prior to this program, I have never worked so hard nor been so justly rewarded.
Jessica Jou, MASS 2006
The program was great because it gave me a chance to immerse myself in mathematics for a whole semester. Living, studying, and working with people who all love math was a great way for me to get a feel for what it's like to be a professional mathematician, and has definitely confirmed my desire to continue on with graduate school.
Arthur Friend, MASS 2006
MASS is a great program. The classes were hard and stretched me to do my best. The homework, exams and projects were very challenging and helped me to learn the material. But my favorite part of the program was working with the other MASS students.
Karen McCready, MASS 2005
In this semester at MASS, I feel that, as a mathematician, my knowledge, experience, and also my enthusiasm for the subject has grown exponentially[…] MASS has truly given me a feel for what
truemathematics is like.
David Koslicki, MASS 2005
The MASS program was everything I hoped for. Living with other students in a math immersion environment was very beneficial to us all. One of the best parts was applying to grad school at the same time as so many people—we were all very well informed because of each other and the information provided from faculty involved with MASS.
Zac McCoy, MASS 2004
The MASS program was a major turning point in my life, let alone my mathematical career. I worked very hard for the first time in mathematics courses and probably learned more in this semester than in the last two years. I made friends that I will keep forever, started research that I hope to continue, and met famous mathematicians that will hopefully be valuable contacts in the future. In short, it was incredible, and solidified my decision to attend graduate school.
Jim Krysiak, MASS 2004
I think that without MASS in my background I would be really struggling tosucceed right now. It's not that what I am doing is any easier that MASS, but going through MASS gave me the edge, both in my mathematical reasoning and in pragmatic issues of handling large workloads and stressful situations. I really think the MASS program has been a huge help in my mathematical training.
Russel Halper, MASS 2003
I was very impressed with the program. It was extremely intense and covered such a broad spectrum of mathematical topics. It was awesome to see how seemingly different areas of mathematics were related in strange and interesting ways.
Rebecca Swanson, MASS 2003
MASS opened my eyes to a hundred different things. It felt like REAL math for once, not watered down or padded for the herd. It offered a ledge to peak over, beyond which we could see for ourselves what real mathematicians do[…] I am definitely going to grad school, and that decision is very closely linked to my time at MASS.
David Jordan, MASS 2003
This semester has been the absolute best, academically, of my college career. I think of it in the same way a foreign studies major would of study abroad. For the whole semester, I lived fully immersed in math. Everyone spoke the language of mathematics. I am thrilled that I've had this oppurtunity—it has given me a very real direction to travel in for graduate school, and I met some incredible people, both students and faculty. It was hard work, but incredibly rewarding.
Mark Branson, MASS 2002
In all of my semesters of college I have never learned even close to this much. Although the program was exceptionally challenging and stressful at times, the reward at the end was even more exceptional.
Beth Morgan, MASS 2002
I found the program to have both fascinating mathematics and great people, and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to become a mathematician. In one semester I learned more about math than I would learn in a year at my home school.
Yakov Shapiro, MASS 2001
My overall impression of the MASS program was very positive. Academically, intellectually and socially, this has been easily one of the best, if not the best, semester of my life. I have met students in the program who are wonderful people and whom I will remain friends with for the rest of my life. I have had the oppurtunity to get to know my professors who were outstanding teachers and great people[…] Finally, I was exposed to tons of wonderful mathematics.
Braden Soper, MASS 2001
The MASS Program is one of those things I won't know the full impact it has had on my life until much later. For now I know it has changed me tremendously. I learned so much, about life, about other people, and about math than I ever dreamed I could.
I met great professors, TA's and friends. My entire future has been rerouted because of MASS. It has made me rethink all my previous decisions and not enter into anything about graduate school blindly, and for this I say thank you to all the professors, TA's and staff for making this semester the most rewarding one of my life.
Tiffany Pritt, MASS 2000
I strongly recommend MASS to all the budding mathematicians across the nation[…] If you have it in you, you gotta face the challenge.
Shobhit Varshney, MASS 2000
My overall impression of MASS was WOW! This has been the best academic program of my life. Thanks to the program, I am now sure that I want to go to grad school in mathematical physics. It was wonderful to be around so many intelligent people who are my age.
Jared Speck, MASS 1999
The MASS program is a great thing. I have never been pushed this hard or learned this much in a single semester.
Matthew Boylan, MASS 1998
The mathematics was certainly the most challenging I've encountered[…] The MASS program has taught me how to do, live, and breathe math.
Chris Staskewicz, MASS 1997
[…]Without exaggerating I can say that MASS had an enormous impact on my life. This was my first encounter with mathematics on such high level. And now, seeing how much there is to it, I can't imagine myself doing something else. Working in the community of people who love mathematics and are good at it meant a lot to me. I have learned to express my ideas and solutions using words, not just formulas. Their excitement about mathematics was very contagious (I've even started telling everybody math jokes). I have also learned that math is hard, but as my adviser said,
Math is hard. That's the beauty of it […]
Natalia Burova, MASS 1996
[…]I just wanted to take this opportunity to say that the MASS program has been the best semester of my life. I was immersed in an environment of bright motivated students and professors and challenged as never before. I was pushed by instructors, fellow students and something deep inside myself to work and learn about mathematics, and my place in the mathematical world. I loved my time there, and never wanted to leave[…]
Suzanne Lynch, MASS 1996