Learn Why One UD Degree Wasn't Enough for Nicolas Cutrona

“I came to the University of Delaware as an undergraduate because it was close to home and I was impressed by my tour when I first visited. After four years of making great connections with professors whom I wanted to continue working with, I was able to still stay near my family and continue to receive a great education by earning a master’s degree in data science. 

My successful experience in the data science graduate program, which was aided by the support of many outstanding professors, helped solidify my decision to enroll in the Ph.D. program in mathematics and pursue my third UD degree. I have a desire to keep learning about complex topics in my field and am very interested in continuing the research I have been doing in the data science program.

UD is preparing me for my future by allowing me to teach courses, engage in research and take classes suited to my career interests. I enjoy teaching and intend to keep doing so following my time as a student. I plan on keeping close ties to my colleagues in academia and continuing to do academic research after I graduate. Overall, I feel very prepared to land a great job in industry as a research scientist when I complete my education. The Ph.D. in mathematics allows me to continue building my research skills and knowledge about complex topics that I will need to produce useful results as a researcher.

My most memorable UD experience to date has been finding solutions to challenging computer science and mathematics problems in my data science research that I had been working on for over a year. I began this project after taking a mathematics course during my first year in graduate school. The professor of the course took interest in what I was doing and has become a great mentor to me who has very energetically supervised this research. The University of Delaware has amazing professors and students who strive for academic excellence and make up a wonderful community of people who will challenge you throughout your academic experience here.”

- Nicolas Cutrona