Volunteer Lecturer Program
Volunteer Lecturer Program of the IMU Commission for Developing Countries
The goal of this program is to foster research and international cooperation between mathematicians in developing countries and the international mathematical community, offering to the universities in the developing countries the economical support to host volunteer lecturers for intensive 3-4 week courses in mathematics. The course given by the volunteer should be part of a regular mathematics undergraduate or master degree program at the hosting university, in subjects where the applicant university could have a lack of expertise. The program is partially funded by the American Mathematical Society and the Niels Henrik Abel Board (Norway).
Deadlines
The next deadlines for Mathematics Insitutions in developing countries to apply for participation in the program are:
- December 1, 2020 for lectures to be held between April 1, 2021 and April 1, 2023
- March 1, 2021 for lectures to be held between July 1, 2021 and July 1, 2023
- June 1, 2021 for lectures to be held between October 1, 2021 and October 1, 2023
- September 1, 2021 for lectures to be held between January 1, 2022 and January 1, 2024
Program Outline for Universities in Developing Countries
IMU/ CDC welcomes applications by universities and mathematics degree programs in the developing world that are in need of, and can provide the necessary conditions for productive collaboration in the teaching of advanced mathematics. We seek universities interested to host a lecturer for intensive 3-4 week mathematics courses, at the advanced undergraduate or master level. The course given by the volunteer should be part of a regular mathematics undergraduate or master degree program at the hosting university.
IMU-CDC can Support the costs of the lecturer visit up to 4400 EURO.
Funding can cover the following costs of the Volunteer Lecturer:
• Travel expense of the lecturer (Economic flight, bus, train cost)
• Visa, travel health insurance, vaccination for the lecturer
• Accommodation (we suggest a guest house if possible) basic living expenses of the lecturer during the time of the course. The costs include local transportation and all basic living expenses.
• Preparation of course material (printing, photocopying, books etc. up to 200 EUR per course and volunteer (receipts necessary)
However no salary is paid to the lecturer. No assistant can be paid either.
Role and Requirements for the host university
The course should be
- in a university in a developing country (for a list of the CDC definition for developing countries please click here)
- an intensive 3-4 week course in mathematics for students of a mathematics degree
- include examinations
- be an integral component of a regular mathematics degree program at the host university
- Substantial course enrollment (15-20 students) has to be guaranteed.
The host university decides the course content and guides the volunteer towards desired syllabus.
- schedule the course and help the volunteer lecturer in preparing the course syllabus and assists when necessary during the course
- coordinate living arrangements and local transportation for the volunteer lecturer
- prepare the students for the course beforehand
- help with student mentoring and assessment and take care of any necessary follow up.
The Host Institution is also required to fill out a report form after the visit of the volunteer.
When warranted, continuing participation in the VLP by a single university in the developing world is encouraged.
List and Database of Volunteers
The CDC Volunteer Lecturer Database contains a large database of the mathematicians willing to volunteer and includes the mathematician's curriculum vitae (CV), the areas of mathematics in which they are prepared to teach, language abilities, typical dates of availability, and previous experience.
You need to log in here, to see the Volunteer Lecturer Database. If you are not yet registered on the IMU website, please register first here.
Lecturers interested to participate in the program, should read the guidelines for lecturers and register here.
If you experience problems, please contact