The William Lowell Putnam Mathematical Competition occurs annually.
Students entering the competition take an examination consisting of twelve
very challenging and delightfully entertaining mathematics problems. The
competition is offered the first Saturday of each December by the
Mathematics Association of America. Participants are given six problems to
work on from 9 am until noon and an additional six problems to work on from
2 pm until 5 pm. Students completing only one of the twelve problems
usually have a great feeling of accomplishment. A student might consider
entering the Putnam competition with as little as one semester of Calculus
training. A student can take the examination as many as four times, so all
mathematics majors should consider entering the competition at least once.
The University of Wisconsin at Whitewater participates in the Putnam
competition annually. Occasionally, one of our students is listed among the
top participants in the country. In 1996, the University of Wisconsin at
Whitewater's team (the combined scores of three participants) placed 87-th
out of the over 250 schools with teams.
For further information about the Putnam Competition and about possible
coaching sessions to prepare for participation, contact Dr. Jonathan Kane.
