Summer Schools

We host two-week summer schools for graduate students and recent PhDs, with room for participation by more senior researchers when appropriate. Our goal is to prepare the next generation of researchers to make the most of new technologies for mathematics.

Summer schools typically meet Monday–Friday each week for two weeks. We encourage formats whereby students work on projects in the second week, such as substantial problems, tool-based experiments, formalization, and so on.

Each summer school has three or more organizers, with one designated contact organizer. They are responsible for the scientific and educational design of the school, including the selection of topics, lecturers, projects, and participants. All organizers are expected to attend for the full two weeks.

In addition, each summer school has two or more teaching assistants, typically advanced graduate students or recent PhDs, who are well-versed in the relevant mathematics and computational tools. TAs are expected to be in residence for the duration of the program and to play a significant role in guiding project groups, running exercise sessions and software labs, helping participants get up to speed on tools and workflows, and providing day-to-day support and feedback.

Current, past, and upcoming summer schools can be found on our Events page.

Proposals

Proposals should be 4–6 pages (excluding references) and submitted as a single PDF to proposals@icarm.io.

Required Elements

A. Basic Information

  • Title of the summer school.
  • Names and affiliations of organizers, with a designated lead contact.
  • Brief statement on organizers’ relevant experience.

When possible, proposals should name proposed TAs or at least a pool of candidates. Final selection of TAs will be made in consultation with ICARM.

B. Scientific Theme and Motivation

  • Description of the central topic for a broad mathematical audience.
  • Explanation of how computer-aided reasoning is expected to be used (for example, formal methods, automated reasoning, data-driven exploration, specialized software, or other computational approaches).
  • Why this is an appropriate and timely subject for a summer school.
  • Relationship, if any, to ongoing or planned ICARM workshops, long-term projects, or external programs.

C. Learning Goals and Outcomes

  • What a typical participant should understand or be able to do by the end of the school.
  • How the school will help participants begin to apply these techniques in their own research.
  • Possible follow-up outcomes: collaborations, shared software or notebooks, datasets, expository materials, or problem collections (outcomes are encouraged but not mandatory).

D. Summer School Format and Structure

Provide a tentative schedule of lectures and lecture times, explain how you plan to structure work on projects, and indicate sample project themes. Provide a sense of what a successful two-week outcome might look like, e.g., experiments completed, conjectures formulated, partial results, prototypes, or formalized statements.

E. Prerequisites and Preparation

Indicate prerequisites in both mathematics and computing. Provide suggestions for pre-school preparation, such as:

  • readings (chapters/sections, not just full books),
  • problem sets,
  • software installations or short tutorials.

These should be realistic for graduate students in a range of programs.

F. Participants and Recruitment

  • Expected number of participants (typical range: 40-60).
  • Description of the desired mix of participants:
    • graduate students,
    • recent PhDs,
    • possibly a limited number of more senior researchers seeking experience with these methods.
  • Plan for recruitment across all groups (by research area, institution type, geography, and demographics).

ICARM will work with you to advertise the summer school and recruit students.

G. Scheduling

Provide several possible date windows, noting any constraints or seasonal preferences.

H. Budget-Related Information

Proposals should indicate:

  • Any anticipated external or complementary support (e.g., from grants, departments, or industry partners), if known.
  • Whether the organizers expect an unusually large or small school (significantly outside the 25–45 participant range) and why.

Review Considerations

Proposals will be evaluated on:

  • Clarity and strength of the scientific and educational vision.
  • Appropriateness and feasibility of the two-week training-plus-project structure.
  • Quality, availability, and balance of organizers and TAs.
  • Suitability and specificity of the proposed projects for the intended audience.
  • Realism and clarity of prerequisites and preparatory materials.
  • Plans for inclusive recruitment and support of diverse participants.
  • Overall alignment with ICARM’s mission to support mathematics through computer-aided reasoning.

Submission Cycle

Proposals can be submitted at any time. We encourage you to contact us at proposals@icarm.io so that we can provide advice and feedback throughout the process. The Scientific Advisory Board typically approves proposals at its semi-annual meetings in May and December.

ICARM Support

ICARM provides:

  • Travel support and housing for all participants.
  • Meals for students and TAs.
  • Stipends for organizers and TAs.
  • Technical support and access to computational resources as needed.
  • Publicity, application management, and assistance with participant selection.

Organizers will work closely with ICARM staff to finalize the program, confirm TAs, and select participants following proposal approval.