MCM/ICM Resources

UW-La Crosse Resources

Although we're relatively new to the MCM/ICM game, we've had some success recruiting students to participate.  Dr. Bennie and I recently spoke of our experiences in this year's contests at our regional MAA meeting.  Our presentation may give you some ideas of how we got our students involved and how you can get your students involved, too.

MCM/ICM Presentation for 2009 Wisconsin MAA Meetings

Resources from Other US Institutions

The Mathematical Contest in Modeling (MCM) and Interdisciplinary Contest in Modeling (ICM) receive entries from colleges and universities worldwide.  Listed below are some links to websites of schools who take this competition very seriously. There is a lot of good advice about building teams and training students to do well. (NOTE: Each link will open a new window.)
  • Carroll College, Helena Montana--My Alma Mater. Carroll has earned three Outstanding papers in the last 6 years.
  • Kelly Cline's Guide to (winning!) the MCM--Kelly won an Outstanding award as a student, and has coached three Outstanding teams. Very good resource with good links.
  • The University of Iowa--UI is relatively new to the MCM/ICM game, but has taken an active role in encouraging students (and other regional colleges) to participate. UI has also begun offering workshops for advisors discussing how to field and prepare teams.
  • Simpson College--One of the few small institutions that consistently recruits large numbers of teams.  This site offers tips on preparing students for the competition.
  • The Quest of the MCM -- Conquering the Math Contest in Modeling -- This is an excellent guide for students and advisors.  It was created by a team of students from the University of Colorado in Boulder who earned 'Outstanding' ratings in three consecutive years!  This should be required reading for every team that competes!
  • Duke University--Duke Mathematics has had remarkable success in recent years in their participation and is a perennial contender for 'Outstanding' awards.  This link will take you to several of their past papers.
  • University of Washington--Another consistent threat for outstanding and meritorious papers.  This link will take you to many of their past papers.
Here are some links to software that may be helpful for the MCM and ICM contests:
  • LINDO and LINGO - LINDO and LINGO are free software applications used for solving linear and nonlinear optimization problems.
  • LyX - The Document Processor
    • : LyX is a free software application for creating professional style mathematical and scientific documents.  Basically, LyX serves as a WYSIWYG interface for Latex.

If you've got a site you'd like listed, please contact me and I'll be glad to add your page.