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Every April, math and statistics associations across the country celebrate Mathematics and Statistics Awareness Month, a full month of programs and initiatives dedicated to promoting better public understanding of mathematics and statistics. ASA programs include a virtual science fair, weekly challenge questions, and video Q&As with working professionals! We hope you enjoy these fun opportunities to participate and share them with your friends and colleagues.

Learn More at AM STAT News.

View more about ASA Member News online.

Waterloo helps Indonesian university launch co-op program

On March 12, Bill Duggan, the University of Waterloo’s READI Project Field Director, joined with Dr. Totok Prasetyo, Director of Institutional Development of Higher Education (Kemenristekdikti), Abdullah Mojadeddi, First Secretary of the Embassy of Canada and Prof. Djisman Simandjuntak, Rector, Prasetiya Mulya University, to open Indonesia’s first Co-operative Education Office at Prasetiya Mulya University.

As one of the READI Project’s first Indonesian university stakeholders, Prasetiya Mulya University embraced the co-operative education model immediately. They have devoted significant time and resources over the past two years to adapting their educational structure as they pioneered the development of this very effective type of work-integrated learning.

Statistics and Actuarial Science PhD candidate Rui Qiao was one of the six students who won the 2019 Huawei Prize for Best Research Paper by a Mathematics Graduate Student. This award recognizes the impact of his Deep learning enables de novo peptide sequencing from data-independent-acquisition mass spectrometry with a prize of $4,000.

The Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science congratulates the University of Waterloo Team, consisting of Ryan Goldford, Jasmine Sirohi, Adaijah Wilson, and Jillian Zhu Ge, for winning the 2019 Munich Re Cup. The Munich Re Cup is the premier actuarial case competition open to students in Canada and the United States. Competing teams present their work on a real-world business problem requiring significant technical analysis and high-level business decision making to a panel of Munich Re executives. The 2019 competition examined the very timely problem of IFRS 17 implementation. We are very proud of the Waterloo team for placing first and winning the $20,000 grand prize!

If you are interested in becoming a CAS student ambassador, please fill out the web form.

UW and the Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS) are seeking motivated and passionate students for the role of ambassador for the CAS Student Central membership program. As a CAS Student Central Ambassador, you will act as a champion for the CAS and the property and casualty profession at Waterloo by:

• Helping to facilitate CAS University Liaison campus visits and presentations each semester
• Increasing student awareness of the resources and opportunities available through CAS Student Central, and
• Assisting with the development of CAS Student Central

Details:

• There will be two ambassadors, ideally with alternating co-op terms if one or both are co-op students
• Ambassadors commit to a two-year term, with responsibilities expected to require 12 hours of work each semester
• You must have sat for at least 1 actuarial exam by Fall 2019

Read more

The Master of Quantitative Finance program has been recognized as the top quantitative finance master's program in Canada. 

Risk.net's Quant Finance Master Guide 2019 has updated their world ranking of the top 15 leading quantitative finance master's programs.  University of Waterloo's Master of Quantitative Finance (MQF) secured the top spot within Canada and 12th overall globally.   

Risk.net lists that they have determined their ranking by considering: 

"metrics including graduate salaries, programme selectivity, student-lecturer contact hours and faculty research scores to run the rule over more than 40 leading quantitative finance-focused master’s programmes worldwide. Particular weight was given to average graduate salaries and a strong employment rate."

MQF is such a great program. It’s a good combination of studying, researching, and finding a job – doing an internship.

A graduate of Waterloo’s undergraduate mathematical finance program, Tianyi was a natural fit for the Master of Quantitative Finance program. He knew many of his professors, and appreciated the computing facilities and the support of his department.

Source: Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence

There are currently eight programs recognized by the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence for ensuring that master’s graduates are equipped with the knowledge, skills and competencies sought by industry.  The Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science's Master of Mathematics (MMath) Data Science Specialization is one of the few recognized programs. 

The Vector Institute (Vector) has been tasked with supporting Ontario’s growing AI eco-system by aiding Ontario’s AI companies and labs source talent. This will be achieved through a combination of three primary activities: talent placement via internships; networking and AI community building; and, applied AI education.

A primary goal associated with applied AI education is to increase enrolment and the number of graduates from AI-related master’s programs. To support universities in achieving this goal, Vector has introduced the Vector Scholarships in Artificial Intelligence (VSAI) to recognize top students enrolled in AI-related master’s programs. 

The VSAI are expected to enhance recruitment of top tier students, increase the number of applicants to recognized AI programs, increase access to advanced studies in AI, and build community among scholars.

Companies that fail to curb their carbon output may eventually face the consequences of asset devaluation and stock price depreciation, according to a new study out of the University of Waterloo.

The researchers further determined that the failure of companies within the emission-intensive sector to take carbon reduction actions could start negatively impacting the general stock market in as little as 10 years’ time.

DEADLINE for Winter 2018 is October 19, 2018

The Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRA) are sponsored by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada.  The Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science has 6 awards available for Winter 2019 term.

This award allows you to conduct research in a university environment full time for a term. The goal is to stimulate your interest in research and to encourage students to enroll in graduate studies in Statistics and Actuarial Sciences.  If you would like to gain research work experience that complements your studies in an academic setting, this award provides you with financial support.

Continue reading on the USRA page