Dr. Melanie Wood

Professor

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Biography

Melanie Matchett Wood is the William Caspar Graustein Professor of Mathematics at Harvard University. She completed her PhD at Princeton University in 2009 under the supervision of Manjul Bhargava. Wood's research interests are in number theory and include a focus on arithmetic algebraic geometry, topology, and probability. Her work often addresses fundamental questions involving the distribution of number fields and related structures, such as class groups and Galois groups of maximal unramified extensions. She is also involved in studying the counting aspects of number fields and the average number of unramified G-extensions. With a strong foundation in probability theory, she develops tools to explore the properties of randomly arising groups and various mathematical structures. Melanie has held faculty positions at Stanford University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison before joining Harvard in 2020. She has received several prestigious awards, including the Packard Fellowship and the National Science Foundation Waterman Award.

Research Interests

Experience

Professor

2020-01-01 — Present

Harvard University • Cambridge, MA

Current faculty member focusing on number theory and related fields.

Faculty

2019-01-01 — 2020-01-01

University of California, Berkeley • Berkeley, CA

Faculty position engaging in research and teaching number theory.

Faculty

2011-01-01 — 2019-01-01

University of Wisconsin-Madison • Madison, WI

Worked on number theory and mathematics education.

Assistant Professor

2009-01-01 — 2011-01-01

Stanford University • Stanford, CA

Engaged in research and teaching in mathematics.

Awards

#

Packard Fellowship

2009-01-01
#

National Science Foundation Waterman Award

2019-01-01
#

MacArthur Fellowship

2017-01-01

Courses

MATH 223A: Algebraic Number Theory MATH 223B: Class Field Theory MATH 124: Number Theory MATH 273X: Distributions Class Groups Global Fields

Requirements for Harvard University

Doctorate Program
Requirements
TOEFL
Total
Required:80
IELTS
Overall
Required:6.5
Prerequisites
Bachelor's degree in a technical or quantitative field
Application Checklist
  • Online application
  • Statement of Purpose
  • Transcripts
  • Letters of recommendation
  • Resume/CV
Specialization Notes

Administered by the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS).