The Directed Reading Program (DRP) is run entirely by graduate students and is in its second semester at Ohio State. It provides an opportunity for undergraduate students to learn about math topics outside of the standard mathematics curriculum and develop mentor-mentee relationships with graduate students in the department. The main goal of the program is to help broaden participation in math and help develop connections between graduate students and undergraduates.
At the beginning of each semester, interested undergraduates are paired up with a graduate student mentor based on shared mathematical interests. They read through a math textbook during the semester, meeting about once a week, all leading up to a short presentation at the end of semester where all the mentees present an interesting theorem or problem that they studied during the program.
The DRP provides an opportunity for students to develop fundamental skills like how to effectively read mathematics texts and proofs as well as how to convey mathematical ideas to an audience. These skills are not only useful in communicating mathematics, but are vital for success in graduate school if mentees decide to go down that path. The DRP also provides a space for graduate students to develop and practice their mentorship skills, which they will need should they continue in academia. Another goal of the DRP is to develop this mentorship connection outside of the academic realm, for example, by providing funds for each mentor-mentee pairing to share coffee during the semester.
The DRP's faculty mentor is Daniel Thompson, and the organizing committee includes graduate students Benjamin Call, Paul Duncan, Minyoung Jeon, Jimin Kim and Scott Newton. If you are interested in getting involved with or learning more about the DRP, please visit the website at go.osu.edu/drpor send an email to ohiostatedrp@gmail.com
