The Iranian Mathematical Society (IMS) organizes the Annual Student Mathematical Competition, a contest designed for undergraduate students majoring in mathematical sciences, although students from other fields are also welcome to participate. This competition has been hosted by Iranian universities since 1973, spanning five decades and encompassing a total of 45 successful competitions. Over the years, this prestigious competition has attracted most of Iran’s talented young mathematicians. Renowned figures like the late Professor Maryam Mirzakhani (who won the gold medal twice in our competitions) and Professor Caucher Birkar (who won the gold medal twice in our competitions), both of whom are Fields medal winners, and many other exceptional Iranian mathematicians who now hold professorships at esteemed universities worldwide have also emerged as winners from this competition.
Annually, each university in Iran has the opportunity to nominate a team, composed of five undergraduate students and led by a faculty member, to partake in this competition. The universities corresponding to the teams are responsible for covering the associated fees payable to the IMS.
The competition’s scientific committee, comprised of seven accomplished mathematicians chosen by the IMS, is responsible for preparing and composing a set of twenty-four problems spanning the realms of analysis, algebra, and combinations. These problems are categorized into four levels and may encompass a range of topics, including calculus, complex functions, linear algebra, and probability typically taught at the undergraduate level. Following, you can find a link to the book containing problems and solutions of the IranianMathematics Competitions 1973-2007:
https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-93-86279-48-4
Team leaders collectively have the option to select half of the questions, which are administered over two days, with each day featuring six problems. Subsequently, a team consisting of twelve mathematicians or Ph.D. students having substantial experience in this competition is entrusted with grading the responses. Each response is subjected to an independent assessment by two evaluators, and in cases of divergence, a consensus is reached through consultation with the scientific committee. Provisions are also made for addressing any grievances in due time.
This year Springer kindly offers 100-euro-equivalent book vouchers to each of the top 10 winners, regardless of whether they have a gold or silver medals.
The competition rankings are determined both on a team and individual basis. Individual participants who get top points are awarded gold, silver, and bronze medals, while others are awarded honorary diplomas based on their earned points. These certificates, provided by the IMS and other participating societies, carry significant professional value and can serve students well in their future careers.
Now, after about fifty years of successfully organizing this competition in Iran, the IMS has decided to internationalize it and allow universities from outside Iran to participate in this prestigious event by forming university teams.
The 46th competition will be hosted by Tabriz University in the northwest of Iran on 30 April- 4 May. In light of the memorandum of understanding between the Iranian and Turkish mathematical societies, the Turkish Mathematical Society (TMS) has disseminated this information to Turkish universities and encouraged their participation in this competition. Travel expenses to Tabriz, registration fees, accommodation, and food costs are the responsibility of participating universities and should be paid per the regulations. Unfortunately, due to economic and political issues, there are no participants from Turkey in the 46th competition.
Each university that is interested in participating in this event should notify the IMS office (Ms. Akram Sadeghi, the head of the office of IMS) via iranmath@ims.ir and send the name of the university, the team leader (persons in charge), and the names of participating students by 31 March 2024. The news will be made available on the IMS website at https://fa.ims.ir/news/