Friday October 20 – Sunday October 22, 2023
Duke University
The GROW 2023 conference is aimed at women (cisgender, transgender, or woman-identified) and nonbinary undergraduates considering graduate school in the mathematical sciences. Through talks, panels, and opportunities for conversation and networking, we will explore the tremendous diversity of lives and careers that can be built upon a Ph.D. in these fields.
Plenary Speaker

Featured Lecturers
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Alejandra Alvarado Eastern Illinois University | Erica J. Graham Bryn Mawr College | Talea Mayo Emory University | Maja Tasković Emory University |
Logistics
The conference will begin on the evening of Friday, October 20 and run through midday on Sunday, October 22. Events will take place in the Gross Hall for Interdisciplinary Innovation and the Washington Duke Inn on the campus of Duke University. The conference is FREE for all accepted participants. We will cover airfare, provide accommodations and arrange for meals. In addition to the speakers above, the conference will also feature
- Panel discussions on graduate studies and research in mathematics:
- How to apply to graduate school: nuts and bolts with grad directors
- From Day 1 to PhD: student and mentor perspectives
- Exploring a research landscape: what it’s like to live a research life
- Life with a PhD: the very many ways we can use our quantitative skills
- Celebratory dinner on Saturday evening
- Small group conversation and networking
- Opportunities for mentoring by graduate students and faculty
We will post additional GROW 2023 details, including a detailed schedule, as they are available. Please contact Shira Viel at grow@math.duke.edu with any inquiries or to request conference announcements and updates.
Applications
We welcome applications applications through MathPrograms from undergraduates at U.S. colleges or universities (including international students) who are considering graduate school in the mathematical sciences. Applications are due on Friday July 28. Applications that are missing any components by that deadline unfortunately cannot be considered. Accepted applicants will be notified by August 18.
Support and Acknowledgements
GROW 2023 will take place at Duke University. Our lead organizer is Shira Viel and our scientific coordinator is Lillian Pierce, and we thank Kathy Peterson of iiD for program management support, as well as the Duke Mathematics Department administration.
GROW 2023 is made possible thanks to the generous support of the Duke University Office of the Provost, the Duke University Trinity College of Arts & Sciences Office of the Dean, the Duke University Dean of Natural Sciences, and finally the Duke University Department of Mathematics and the Chair of Duke Mathematics. We further thank the Rhodes Information Initiative at Duke University for program management support and meeting space. Student participants at GROW 2023 are generously supported by the National Science Foundation (DMS-2200470, DMS-2154029 with PI’s Lillian Pierce, Nicholas Cook). In addition, the organizing team thanks the following colleagues: Paul Bendich, Dorothy Buck, Xiuyuan Cheng, Veronica Ciocanel, Nicholas Cook, Adam Levine, Jianfeng Lu, Colleen Robles, Marc Ryser, and Anita Layton.
GROW is organized in cooperation with the Association for Women in Mathematics (AWM) and supports the Welcoming Environment and Diversity and Inclusion Statements of the AWM. It is organized through the Institute for Mathematical and Statistical Innovation (IMSI). We thank them for their support which originates in the NSF grant DMS-1929348.
Previous GROW conferences took place at Duke University (2022), University of Illinois East Campus (2021), University of Chicago (2020), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2019), University of Michigan (2018), and Northwestern (2015-17)
The photograph of Melanie Matchett Wood is © John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation- used with permission. All other photos come from the websites of our speakers and panelists.