Cal State LA Math Circle

Cal State LA Math Circle

The Cal State LA Math Circle is a tuition-free K-12 enrichment program open to the Cal State LA and Greater Los Angeles community. With a committed group of Cal State LA student and faculty volunteers, we help run the following events: 

DMAS (grades 3-8) -- April 2025 at 10 AM. Registration information to come in early 2025.

AMC 8 (grades 6-8) -- Registration is now open here for the AMC 8 offered January 22, 2025 at 4:30 PM on the Cal State LA campus. 

AMC 10/12 (grades 8-12) -- The 2024 exam has now passed. Registration for November 2025 will open up in September 2025. 

The Cal State LA Math Circle is ran by a dedicated group of Cal State LA Student and Faculty volunteers under the overall guidance of our leadership team: 

Director: Jason O'Neill ([email protected])           

Coordinator: Tuyetdong Phan-Yamada ([email protected])

More information pertaining to these events, our program and how to support our program is listed below. 

Cal State LA Math Circle is a tuition-free enrichment program open to the neighborhood of CSU Los Angeles since Fall 2017. Students from Grade 3 to high school who are interested in mathematics and eager to learn can join our Math Circle. We are committed to the following:

  • motivating kids to take math competition tests and to encourage all children to experience math in a creative and inspiring light
  • explaining complicated math concepts in simple logical steps
  • furthering enjoyment and wonder of math for all kids no matter their situation in life
  • building self-confidence and helping kids aspire to great achievement
  • building a positive Math learning environment

The Cal State LA Math Circle hosts a variety of K - 12 outreach activities through the Mathematics Department at Cal State LA, which is in the college of Natural and Social Sciences at Cal State LA.  We are seeking funds to cover review workshops, exam registration, and contest award costs. Donations may be made by following the steps: 

Step 1: Go online to https://www.calstatela.edu/givenow or click the yellow "Give now" button in the upper right part of this page.

Step 2: Select the amount you wish to donate. 

Step 3: For "program you would like to support", select "Other" and write "UT751 Math Circle" to indicate that you would like to support our program. 

We very much appreciate all donations! 

DMAS is a math enrichment game developed by Tuyetdong Phan-Yamada. DMAS, which stands for Division, Multiplication, Addition and Subtract entails using these binary operations on integers in a three by three grid to come up with a "Magic" number. Cal State LA hosts a DMAS competition each Spring for students in Grades 3 through 8.

The DMAS 2024 Competition will take place on  April 13th 2024 at 10 AM and Registration is now open here. In the meantime, you are encouraged to take a look at the competition rules and to practice.

The American Math Competition 8 (AMC 8) is a challenging exam which builds problem-solving skills and mathematical knowledge in middle school students. It consists of 25 questions over 40 minutes and is offered in January. 

The next iteration of the AMC will take place on January, 22nd 2025 at 4:30 PM and registration through the Cal State LA Math Circle is now open here.

In the meantime, please feel free to take a look at these practice problems

The American Math Competition 10/12 (AMC 10/12) is a challenging exam which builds problem-solving skills and mathematical knowledge in high school students. Eleventh and twelfth graders must sign up for the AMC 12 whereas ninth and tenth graders may sign up for either (although AMC 10 is recommended). Both exams consist of 25 questions over 75 minutes and are offered in November. 

The next iteration of the AMC 10/12 B will be in November 2025. 

In the meantime, please feel free to take a look at these practice problems

Our programming is greatly strengthen by the volunteers from the Cal State LA community. We welcome and strongly encourage students, faculty, lecturers and staff of all mathematical background to volunteer! If you are interested, please fill out this google form indicating your interest in one or more of our events. 

All student participants in the DMAS competition should feel a strong sense of accomplishment for completing the competition and exploring mathematics at a deeper level. The list of students below scored particularly well during the competition: 

 

 

All student participants in the AMC competition should feel a strong sense of accomplishment for completing the competition and exploring mathematics at a deeper level. The exam is quite difficult and even being able to answer a few questions correctly is a tremendous accomplishment. The list of students below scored particularly well during the competition: