<p>[Essay</a> Contest - Association for Women in Mathematics (AWM)](<a href=“http://sites.google.com/site/awmmath/programs/essay-contest]Essay”>http://sites.google.com/site/awmmath/programs/essay-contest)
Now Open
Deadline: January 31, 2012</p>
<p>This essay contest is open to students in the following categories:
Grades 6-8
Grades 9-12
Undergraduate</p>
<p>At least one winning submission will be chosen from each category.</p>
<p>What is the subject of the essay?
Your essay should be based primarily on an interview with a woman currently working in a mathematical career. The submission must be in essay form, not just a transcript of your interview.</p>
<p>How long should the essay be?
The essay should be approximately 500 to 1000 words in length.</p>
<p>Here are some suggestions for finding possible women to interview:
female math teachers
female professors in mathematics at a local college or university (you can try looking up the school’s website and looking for the mathematics department; many departments list their faculty and their email addresses)
also consider other mathematical department such as applied mathematics, computer science, statistics, physics, engineering, finance, etc.
to find mathematicians from underrepresented minorities, you may want to try the website for the National Association of Mathematicians (NAM), the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), or the Society for Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS). </p>
<p>What should I ask in my interview?
The following questions are suggestions for what ask your interviewee about during the interview:
What motivated your interviewee to pursue a career in the mathematical sciences?
What is your interviewees educational, family and cultural background?
What kind of work does she do?
Does she have any advice to students who are interested in pursuing a career in the mathematical sciences?
What are your interviewees hobbies?</p>
<p>Good Luck!</p>
<p>Take Care,
Lisa</p>