What students say about Mathcamp

What can I say that could possibly express the wonder of Mathcamp -- the joy that exists here, that permeates all who take part in it, that stays with them afterwards? -- Anna de Bakker (student, Mathcamp '03,'06,'07)

From Mathcamp 2008

Mathcamp is a place where all the smart, nice, interesting people you always wished you'd meet come together for five weeks to do math.

Returning to Mathcamp this year was like coming home.

The very thought of the way Mathcamp is run academically would give many school administrators nightmares. It is a ridiculous and foolhardy idea, surely, to let students choose exactly what academic path to take, or if they are sufficiently tired, not to take one at all that day. To not assign grades, nor require homework, nor even ask that a student not switch between classes at will, this is not something found at any high school or college in America. Yet, for making Mathcamp work, it is everything. Those enticed by the idea of learning as much math as can possibly be taken join together to show that this crazy education experiment can be successful. Any aspects of community and non-academic life follow directly from the grand Mathcamp experiment--people continue to share math simply out of love. There is very rarely a complaint, because unpleasant experiences simply vanish. There is no place like Mathcamp in the world.

Amusingly, I have learned more non-mathematical things in Mathcamp than in real life. You learn to hike in summer snow, to work together to escape a pitch-black cave as your flashlight dissipates, to swing dance, but most importantly to appreciate the vast amount of amazing talent here. Mathematically, I do not even know where to begin. You will never learn complex analysis, point-set topology, and Galois theory in high school. Here, you will be immersed in a rich mathematical world that you will never have believe to have existed. Here, you will understand why we all love this beautiful creature known as mathematics. It is a pity to be off to college, never to experience Mathcamp as a camper again. Don't wait until the end of high school before you apply to Mathcamp. Do it now, before this wonderful jewel disappears... I can't help to be this cheesy when Mathcamp has affected me so much. Thank you for granting me this opportunity. I will never take this experience for granted.

There is a lack of words in the English language necessary to describe that which is Mathcamp.

I felt more at home at Mathcamp than at home.

Mathcamp is a lot of math, and it\'s even more fun. Everyone here loves to do math, and many people know quite a lot of math and will explain it to anyone who asks. Everyone here also loves to do fun things... whatever fits their personal definition of fun. The combination is synergistic and excellent. Imagine exploring a cave in the dark, or going whitewater rafting, or playing card games, or singing, or dancing, or whatever you like to do; now imagine doing that with a bunch of people who love math. If you think this is awesome, then you should come.

Mathcamp has been the best experience of my life. The math that I learn here is wonderful. I have yet to find a better environment in which to learn math. There is always interesting math to learn, whether it comes in the form of fun classes, challenging problem sets, or interesting discussions with campers and staff. The mathematical environment was the reason I applied to Mathcamp two years ago, and the environment I found is the best I could have imagined. The math, I think, is the reason Mathcamp exists, but it is not what makes Mathcamp all that it is. When I first came to Mathcamp, I discovered something I could not have imagined, and still cannot adequately describe. I came to Mathcamp looking for math, for learning, for an experience that would be, in some sense, much the same as what I had experienced in the past. For me, happiness, fulfillment, was derived from activities; I enjoyed doing something, and everything else was either irrelevant or a nuisance. I expected the academic environment to be better than any I had experienced, and thus the nonacademic environment to detract less from my experience than it had in the past. When I first applied to Mathcamp, I wrote that ``I would like to make new friends who love math as much as I do.'' I wanted to find people like me, with whom I could interact enjoyably on a purely academic level. I was looking, I think, for a universe in which all of the interactions were related to academia. What I found instead was a strange, new universe, unlike anything I had ever experienced before. Never have I been more happy that what I got was not what I asked for. For the first time in my life, I wanted to socialize. I discovered that interactions unrelated to academics could be enjoyable, that I wanted to interact for the sake of interaction. When I come to Mathcamp, I am immersed in this environment, this experience, this universe which means more to me each year I return. Mathcamp no longer means to me what it did when I applied; I no longer think of Mathcamp only as five week gathering of mathematical talent and opportunity. Last year, I called Mathcamp utopia, a paradise for those who love math. This year, I have realized that ``paradise'' is not quite the right word. Mathcamp is my home, where I am happy simply for existing, for living in the universe that is Mathcamp.

The awesomeness Mathcamp is overwhelming: the rigorous and interesting math classes, the dazzlingly fun activities, the extremely nice people and mentors... Prior to this experience I could not possibly conceive that something like Mathcamp can exist, but it really opened my eyes, about everything. You don't do math here at Mathcamp; you live math to its fullest.

From Mathcamp 2007

Mathcamp isn't really a camp. It's more of a five week long festival - a congregation of people who celebrate math, enjoy math, learn math and essentially live math. Through it all I've discovered cool math that I wouldn't have understood before, cool people who I didn't know existed. I've learnt that I actually know close to nothing about the weird and wonderful subject that is mathematics, and that I will probably pursue it for the rest of my life. Math on, Mathcamp!

Mathcamp is a really special place. The teachers are fantastic. I've been exposed to topics and ideas and ways of thinking here that I now cannot imagine being without. The culture here is very very special. When Mathcampers are interested in something, they really dive into it. Discussions about the nature of our education system and conversations about the religions of the world can be as important a part of your day as the crazy and new math you encounter. Mathcampers hold an incredibly diverse array of opinions and have an incredible variety of ways of looking at the world, but we're all held together by our love of math. All of my viewpoints have been challenged. I've made friends I'd never have met in most other situations, friends I hope to keep for the rest of my life. I've changed so much in my two years here. I think about math in a new, deeper way. I approach problems differently. I've gained perserverence and learned to ask for help without shame and give it with joy.

Mathcamp not only taught me how to think about topological spaces, category theory, fractal geometry, complex analysis, and the math behind juggling, but it also brought me into the first community where I could truly feel at home. Prior to my time at Mathcamp, I believed that finding a group of 120 accepting, like-minded, and all around excellent people was entirely impossible. Fortunately, I was completely wrong. Both academically and socially, Mathcamp taught more to me in 5 weeks than my high school managed to teach in 4 arduous years.

The atmosphere of Mathcamp made it possible to be myself totally and completely, without fear of being judged. Coming to Mathcamp gave me the courage to explore new ideas and take on new challenges, not only at camp itself, but later, in the real world as well.

Coming to Mathcamp has given me a community with which to interact, not just five weeks a year, but all year round.

Mathcamp is not only a program of cool math classes and clever colloquia, but a world of alike people, all sharing a love of math. Mathematicians often have similar interests outside of math, and Mathcamp brings these people together into a thriving, memorable, and incredible summer.

Having the Banach-Tarski Paradox incorporated into the daily routine goes a long way in optimizing one's life - twice.

Coming to Mathcamp gave me a picture of what I wanted my life to be like. When I'm at Mathcamp, I know who I am, I know who I will be, and I'm happy with both of those. I don't come to Mathcamp to prepare for the next part of my life, I don't come to Mathcamp so that I have something to do during the summer. I come to Mathcamp for the same reasons I breathe.

Mathcamp is the only place I've found where the social prejudices of the rest of the world simply disappear.

Coming to Mathcamp is an amazing experience. You get to learn about the unique and fun aspects of math that you aren't taught in school and you get to do so with a huge variety of people from all over the world who are all as passionate about math as you are. Mathcamp is a mentally stimulating environment where you can learn as much as you want about any subject in math that interests you. The memories that I have made at Mathcamp are definitely ones that I will cherish forever.

Mathcamp is isomorphic to phenomonal.

It is a great thing to realize there are so many other similarly-minded high school students who share my passion for math.

A refreshing break from the boredom of high school mathematics.

Mathcamp opened a flood gate of fresh ideas into my head. I only wish I could learn this much in school!

Mathcamp is great because you are given the opportunity to go to the classes you are interested in, and not required to go to classes that you aren't interested in. At Mathcamp, you can do virtually anything, be it incredibly smart, funny, silly, etc., and you can find someone who will support you.

Mathcamp starts from the assumption that all the campers are there because they want to learn cool math (a good thing) and gives campers the freedom to choose the classes they think will be most educating and interesting.

Mathcamp is a home; I have never before been so absolutely satisfied with something so large. The staff, campers and entire atmosphere was incredible.

Go to Mathcamp!!! It's not only the math there, but you get to meet awesome people and have a great time! This was definitely the best summer of my life!

Nothing stopped us from getting together to do something we all love (math). Not race, not gender, not religion, not age. Nothing.

From Mathcamp 2006

At Mathcamp I learned that the math I thought I knew was just a tiny subset of all the math out there... Mathcamp has an amazing community. Here "crazy" is a compliment, although not a very creative one. Students are encouraged to take advantage of a vast amount of freedom and the awesome thing is that we all choose to do math, as well as engage in lots of other random things which somehow seem funny. It's kind of a "you have to be there" thing. You have to come to Mathcamp.

Mathcamp is an oasis of sanity(!) and intelligence in a harsh world. Only here have I been able to truly set myself and my mind free.

I've always wanted to do things at least related to math. Now I realize that pure math is so much fun, I really don't want to miss it.

I learned more useful and accurate information here than anywhere else about math, the world, and myself.

Mathcamp didn't let me down. The quotes, articles, advertisements for the first time weren't just propaganda (like other programs/schools), they were true! Oh, also, I didn't expect such insanity, but I love it!

Math at Mathcamp is like the Force... There just is no way of escaping it even if you wanted to. Since we're all "Force"-users, it was pretty much everywhere. Math isn't something you just do in classes.

MATHCAMP = AMAZING

Mathcamp is about math, but much of the exposure comes from what you learn outside the classroom, from the staff and other campers... It made me happy to be a geek, made certain that math will always be around me, and made me always strive to be the best I can be.

I've never looked forward to early morning classes as much as at Mathcamp.

The most amazing part of Mathcamp was the people. We had such similar interests that I wasn't afraid to be myself around them. I definitely had the best summer of my life here.

My two years at Mathcamp have fundamentally changed (for the better) the way I do mathematics, what mathematical topics I can do, and how I see mathematics and a life associated with it -- something no other program has created for me.

Mathcamp was the first place where I really understood the beauty and intricacies of abstract mathematics.

It's not often that you find a place that is exciting to the mind and liberating to the spirit. Mathcamp is both.

It's amazing how the staff are as friendly, and as nerdy, as the campers.

At Mathcamp, you meet people you never thought could exist, you do things you never thought could be possible, and you learn things you'd never dreamed of. If you've ever wanted reality to include things it didn't contain for you, come to Mathcamp.

If I had to sum up Mathcamp in one word, it would be "Ewazoapab", because no current English word can fully describe how great camp is. The past four years at Mathcamp have been, without a doubt, the best experience of my life.

The people at Mathcamp are the most accepting, fun, cool, and amazing people I have ever known. Don't worry about not fitting in or not having fun, because you will. Mathcamp is more than cool, more than incredible, and more than amazing. You have to come and experience it for yourself.

I loved Mathcamp's policy of treating its campers as responsible people and trusting them to make good decisions. I think it works well and creates a positive atmosphere.

If you are accepted to camp, you should come, no matter the location or financial problems. It will be the best choice you make in your life.

I think that this is the best math camp I've been... there's more freedom and more motivation too, which makes great opportunities for learning.

When I first applied I was a little nervous, but as soon as I came I knew I had found the perfect place with a very acceptable balance of math and other fun activities. This aspect of the camp, and the coolness of the people I met, caused me to return each of the following three years.

Mathcamp is the perfect environment to do the exciting kind of math you'll never get to do in high school.

Mathcamp was the first place where I could be completely myself and have everyone think I was cooler for it.

My project was too interesting: I was thinking about it in class. I don't know how to fix this kind of problem though.

Mathcamp has something for people interested in any field of math. You learn subjects and ideas that you won't be able to learn at any other place. And that's not even mentioning all the other activities and fun things that take place.

Mathcamp isn't just about the math you learn (although that is a large part of why it's so fun). You end up making some of the closest friends you'll ever have. The world at Mathcamp is completely different from the one you normally experience.

Mathcamp is like paradise. You come here and you are in awe of everything. When you leave, it seems like every aspect of life at home pales in comparison to life at Mathcamp. I came here expecting Mathcamp to exceed my expectations. I leave here realizing that Mathcamp has exceeded my wildest dreams. I learned about more math here than in all of middle school and high school. Mathcamp is paradise.

Mathcamp is an awesome experience. I learned a lot of cool math (and computer science) in a bunch of different fields. I have a much better idea of what kind of math I like. The people are also really cool. They come up with all kinds of really interesting and creative ideas.

Now I know what math is.

The people here at Mathcamp are what make the camp so special. It's the first time I can actually have an intelligent conversation with my peers. So much math, so much fun.

Mathcampers are an amazingly creative group of people. The games here were absolutely hilarious. People here are not only incredibly smart but incredibly crazy (in a good way).

Students are not treated as little kids, everybody is mature.

The teachers are awesome and very accessible. Classes are more interesting than anything else I've seen outside of Mathcamp.

Mathcamp exposed me to many wonderful areas of mathematics that I previously hadn't even heard of. Mathcamp is different from other camps because it doesn't just teach you math, it makes you care about it. I've learned things here I otherwise might never have seen. Mathcamp is more than a camp, it's a community.

Mathcamp takes math and fun to a whole new level.

At first, I had a hard time integrating into the camp culture, it's quite different from where I live. But honestly, its style and the characters at the camp caught my mind and now I'm addicted to it.

Whatever you want to do, Mathcamp will help you get there and at the same time increase your interest in learning. The worst that can happen is you will learn more than ever before and have the time of your life.

Before I came to camp, I thought that math = problem solving, but I realized how wrong I was. I learned that applied math can be just as fun as pure math.... If you want to spend a summer discovering the beauty of math and want to understand why mathematics interests people from every time period and every region on earth, you should not miss Mathcamp.

I've been to several other math programs, and the one thing none of them had was math that was not centered around problem solving. These kinds of classes are, in my opinion, the most valuable thing at Mathcamp.

If you are bored of being the shark in a small pond, come here. This is a meeting of carnivores, the best cure for arrogance.

The more I spend time here, the more I realize how much I love math. I've learned that I can live completely on math. This place is awesome!

Mathcamp will become your family. Everyone at Mathcamp is free to be who they want to be and mature into the person they will be without ridicule or fear of mocking.

It feels so good to be among such interesting people. The craziness and closeness have been so important to me. This is truly one of those places that feels like home.

Imagine the thrill of setting out in a boat and stumbling across an island that you never knew existed before. At Mathcamp you get that thrill every day. By the end, it feels as if awhole continent has opened before you, waiting to be explored.

Mathcamp is totally awesome! It feels like the rest of the year sort of wears me down and then Mathcamp puts me back on my feet again. The classes here are awesome! Each year concepts that seemed foreign at the beginning become natural by the end.

Mathcamp was the best summer program I've been to in a long time, most likely ever. I acquired new math skills that will benefit me in school, learned interesting math that I wouldn't have learned until college or later, and met friends I'll keepin contact with for a long time.

Mathcamp has opened my eyes to fields that I had heard of but knew little about, so now I can do exploring on my own... Before I got here, I was terrified. However, within a few days I felt like I had been here all my life. No matter what, if you love math you'll fit in.

When you first come to Mathcamp, you think you're leaving home to join a strange new place with people you don't know. When you leave Mathcamp, you feel the same way -- like you're leaving your home and are about to return to the strange place they call "the real world"

It's hard to put into words what makes Mathcamp so amazing. Somehow, I manage to get more math and learning out of it than anywhere else and yet still have time and freedom to do what I want. It's a place where people suddenly are not afraid to seem silly and be themselves. I still can't see how Mathcamp manages this so well, even compared to similar programs.

You really don't know how lacking you high school math curriculum is until you come to Mathcamp.

I went to SUMaC two years ago and liked Mathcamp much more. I like the personal freedom and responsibility, the freedom of choosing classes, the difficulty of the classes, the silliness of the community and its culture, and the strong focus on camper organized events.

I really liked being with other people who enjoyed math just as much as I did. I liked the freedom that we were given, from choosing classes to choosing what we wanted to do in general. I've learned so much more about math than ever before.

I think this year I made a number of cool connections between subjects -- hyperbolic geometry, physics, etc -- that helped me sort out what topics I like in math and how they relate to each other... I love seeing how different ideas connect with different applications.

I got a taste of a lot of different kinds of math and a thirst for more. I think I really got a good idea of math that I now want to come back and build on.... I learned so many more things than just math here, and from so many more people than just mentors... I really really hope I can carry the way I feel about math and myself and other people... There is no way I could have imagined anything like Mathcamp... Thank you so much for the most amazing amazing five weeks of my life!

Now, math does not seem like simply an idle hobby, but an exciting place where new things are discovered.

I knew Mathcamp had a lot of freedom, but I was surprised at just how much. If ever I felt like I needed to miss a class, I could (though I never did, which says something about the classes).

Alumni perspectives:
Comments from alumni who are in college or graduate school

Mathcamp has contributed to my personal development more than any other experience in my life. It was there that I formed my deepest friendships, and it was there that my love of mathematics crystallized. At Mathcamp, I was exposed to a level of rigourous argument that I had never seen before, one that helped me immeasurably in my later studies; and at Mathcamp, I encountered a breadth of mathematical topics that I have never seen since. Mathcamp fills a void that is lacking not only in the high schools, but also in the universities; it provides a truly unique experience to creative young math enthusiasts.

Mathcamp has changed the way I think of math and made the subject a big part of my life. During my summer as a camper, I found that I not only love math for its beauty, but also for the community of people surrounding it. At camp, enjoying math is most important, not aptitude or performance. In that respect, I think Mathcamp is one of the best math communities. I love Mathcamp because of the people embodying it and the knowledge, passion, and opportunities that they have given me.

My summer at Mathcamp was one of the best experiences of my life. Almost every aspect of it allowed me to see what a far-reaching subject mathematics is. I particularly liked the fact that we were constantly free to select which classes to attend; I think that this helped to convey the idea that math can be almost anything you want it to be.

At the risk of being overly sentimental, Mathcamp is where I found myself. At the end of each summer, I think that it can't get any better. Then I return the next summer and the experience only intensifies. The campers and staff all emanate a love for mathematics--something I've found rare in other similar academic programs. The variety of classes is incredible--as is the depth. I firmly believe that Mathcamp is the best way to spend 5 weeks of summer.

At Mathcamp, I discovered a warm community of amazing teachers and students who loved math at least as much as I did. The friendships that I made during those five weeks at Mathcamp withstood both the test of nearly three years' time and that of thousands of miles. Mathcamp gave me the inspiration that I needed to continue with math, and the ambition to challenge myself and to apply to the top universities in the country.

I went to Mathcamp before my senior year in high school. By the end of the four weeks, Mathcamp had erased all doubt in my mind that I wanted to do math for the rest of my life. That summer not only introduced me to beautiful problems in math, but showed me that I could give (if only once in a very great while) beautiful solutions to math. More importantly, during the times that I could offer only ordinary solutions, I still enjoyed pursuing mathematics, and enjoyed talking with other people about what I was doing. Mathcamp reassured me that I was not singular in loving math, and allowed me to meet other people who love math, with whom I still do math with even now, four years later.

Mathcamp reaffirmed my desire to be a teacher--with the great teaching provided by some of the guest lecturers and the staff. It reminded me of the reason I want to be a teacher: I want other people to see the beauty and elegance and feel the awesomeness of math (just like some of the lecturers and staff made me feel)... Everything seems to fall into the framework created by Mathcamp!

Mathcamp is the one of the most incredible things that could have happened to me. When I received the brochure in the mail four years ago (is it really four years already?) I had no idea, really, what it would be like. "Hey, I like math," I thought, "it sounds like a fun thing to do for a month." Well, it certainly was that, and a whole lot more.

What I got out of Mathcamp was threefold. Firstly, I was exposed to a lot of diverse topics in real mathematics, which the average high school student doesn't even imagine the existence of, and I learned many new techniques for problem solving. Secondly, I learned that there are lots of other people who like math and that it's really fun to do math with them. And thirdly—which isn't specific to math, but may be more important overall—I learned how to be independent and have fun. I think the social atmosphere of Mathcamp is no less important than the mathematical one; college life was much less of a shock to me because I had gone to Mathcamp for three years.