Programme Details

“I can gladly say that I loved, absolutely loved, every second I spent at the mathematical world of PROMYS where mathematics becomes as much a part of your life as the wonderful people you meet there.” Oishani Das, PROMYS India 2023

Quick Facts

Visiting mathematician, Professor Sujatha Ramdorai, with students at PROMYS India 2023.

2024 dates: 5 May – 15 June, 2024.

Location: Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru (formerly Bangalore). Participants study and attend lectures on campus, eat meals together, and are housed in gender separated housing areas at IISc.

Cost: Free

Thanks to the generosity of our sponsors, all students at PROMYS India 2024 will be awarded full scholarships which covered all tuition, housing and meals for the six weeks of the programme. In addition, applicants may apply for need-based funding for travel and laundry expenses. There are no required books.

Eligibility: To be eligible to apply, students must be in secondary or higher secondary school in Standards IX – XII (or +1, +2, or PUC). Students attending government-funded schools, government-aided private schools, unaided private or independent schools, sixth form colleges, home schools, and other types of secondary and higher secondary schools in India are all eligible to apply. Students need to be at least 15 (and not yet 19) by the start of the programme. Please see the Application page for further information regarding eligibility.

Application: The application includes a challenging problem set, application form, recommendation from a mathematics teacher, and school report card(s). Families who are applying for need-based funding for travel and laundry also complete a financial aid form.

Students: Secondary school students aged 15 – 18, including returning students. Although students are encouraged to talk to all the counsellors, each student also has an assigned counsellor who provides feedback on the student’s work on the daily problem set.

Counsellors: Undergraduate students from strong mathematics programmes. Counsellors support and grade the work of their 3 or 4 students. Independently, counsellors conduct research and arrange their own minicourses.

Faculty and Mentors: The Director of PROMYS India is Professor Ila Varma who gives the daily Number Theory lectures. Professor Aditya Karnataki and Professor Parthanil Roy teach Advanced Seminars. Visiting mathematicians give Guest Lectures. Click here for the Faculty page.

COVID-19 Policy: Participants will be required to comply with any Indian Institute of Science COVID-19 requirements and protocols which may be in place. If necessary, more information will be provided to accepted students.

Click here for student comments about PROMYS India.

Typical Day at PROMYS India

The day begins with the mandatory morning Number Theory lecture which meets for an hour and a half each morning from Monday through Friday. Overall, participants spend most of their time working independently or in small groups on the problem sets distributed daily at the end of morning lecture. The problem sets will encourage students to design their own numerical experiments and to employ their own powers of observation to discover mathematical patterns, to formulate and test conjectures, and to justify their ideas by devising their own mathematical proofs.

Students continue to work on problem sets throughout the day (and frequently the evening too). Counsellors review the work of their 3 or 4 students and provide individual feedback and support. Students often choose to work in communal areas where counselors are always available

Many first-year students also meet in small groups to work on first-year labs, supervised by counsellors and faculty. Returning students will have the opportunity to work on research projects proposed by professional mathematicians.

Click HERE to visit the “Mathematics at PROMYS India” page.

Other Activities

During the six weeks of the programme, participants devote the bulk of their time and attention to mathematics. However, counsellors and faculty will organise some non-mathematical activities and outings. Some of these will be optional and based on demand.

In addition, students and counsellors will be able to participate in informal activities such as sports and music (students may wish to bring their musical instruments) using facilities on the IISc campus. It is not unusual for participants to enjoy playing card games or chess.

The friendships built at PROMYS are very frequently deep and long-lasting.