Brandeis students finish in top 10% in prestigious math competition
By David Levin
March 13, 2025
Brandeis students recently finished among the top 10% of participants in the Putnam Mathematics Competition, one of the premier undergraduate competitions in the field. The university’s team of seven finished 47th out of 477, with team member Max Shepherd ’26 earning an individual rank of 150th out of 3,988 total contestants.
The competition, which is open to all universities across the U.S. and Canada, gives contestants a set of 12 complex mathematical problems to solve during two three-hour sittings. The problems are typically so difficult that the median score ranges between 0 and 1 out of 120 possible points, says Jonathan Toboul, Brandeis mathematics department chair — but he thinks that difficulty is a big part of what makes the competition so enjoyable.
“Solving a complex math problem is entertaining, creative and fun, and finding a solution often comes with feelings of harmony and beauty,” Toboul says. “I strongly believe that what makes the Brandeis team successful is the curiosity, creativity, enthusiasm or even passion that the Putnam coaches are able to spur.”
This year’s Putnam group, which was led by Brandeis professor Kiyoshi Igusa (a former Putnam participant himself) and graduate student Tudor Popescu, included, in addition to Shepherd, Catinca Alexandru ’27, Phuong Pham ’25, Isaac Berger ’25, Bhajan Deshpande ’27, Keval Patel ’28 and Mason Price ’25.
