Sylvester Zhang awarded Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (6/28/2024) – School of Mathematics PhD student Sylvester Zhang was recently awarded the Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship from the University of Minnesota. The Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship (DDF) gives the University's most accomplished Ph.D. candidates an opportunity to devote full-time effort to an outstanding research project by providing time to finalize and write their dissertation during the fellowship year.

Sylvester Zhang started the University of Minnesota Mathematics PhD program in Fall 2020, after completion of his undergraduate studies in Mathematics and Economics here at UMN. Zhang is interested in algebraic combinatorics. In particular he aims to explore topics like total positivity, cluster algebras, symmetric functions, and the flag manifold. Advised by Pavlo Pylyavskyy, Zhang is currently primarily focused on two distinct research topics: 1) an approach to Schubert polynomials using methods from mathematical physics, and 2) affine symmetric group and combinatorics of the affine flag variety. He says he is looking forward to continuing a career in academia and research after graduation.

The University of Minnesota DDF program aims to give the most accomplished Ph.D. candidates – those who have passed the written and oral preliminary examinations and their program coursework – an opportunity to devote full-time effort to an outstanding research project by providing time to finalize and write their dissertation during the fellowship year. The fellowship grants awardees a $25,000 stipend, academic year tuition, subsidized health insurance through the Graduate Assistant Health Plan for up to one calendar year, and a $1,000 conference grant.