A team of undergraduate students of the University of Macau (UM) recently received a second prize at the 2020 Contemporary Undergraduate Mathematical Contest in Modeling (CUMCM) in China. This is the seventh consecutive year that UM has received a prize in this contest. This year’s contest attracted over 45,000 teams from around the world. Only about 4 per cent of the teams received first prizes or second prizes. The UM team was comprised of three students, namely Gao Houpu, Tian Yuan, and Yan Jia. They were led by Associate Professor Liu Zhi in the Department of Mathematics.

Organised by the China Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, the CUMCM is a national contest in the field of mathematical modelling. It is also the largest mathematical modelling contest in the world. This year’s contest attracted more than 130,000 students in 45,680 teams. The teams come from 1,470 universities in 33 areas in China, including provinces, cities, autonomous regions, and special administrative regions, as well as foreign countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and Malaysia..

Over the years, UM students have won different awards at modelling competitions. The university actively organises activities to enhance students’ ability in mathematical modelling and data analysis, including the launch of a mathematical modelling course and the establishment of a mathematical modelling advisory committee comprised of three professors. The university also provided support to students in the establishment of a sub-organisation under the UM Students’ Union, namely the Mathematical and Interdisciplinary Modeling Association. In the future, the university will establish a mathematics club to improve students' skills in mathematical application and programming.