Teams determined to have the best solution papers receive special recognition in the form of tuition scholarships for college education. For complete details on scholarships and recognition, read the Rules and Guidelines.
Finalist Awards
M3 Challenge Finalist Awards honor the top six teams overall for outstanding mathematical approaches to the three main prompts in the Challenge problem. Teams should create mathematical models; justifying assumptions, defining parameters, describing their process, analyzing effects of change, and describing results. Finalist teams are invited to an expense paid trip to New York City.
Award Amounts
- Champion: $20,000 team prize
- Runner Up: $15,000 team prize
- Third Place: $10,000 team prize
- Finalist (three teams): $5,000 team prize


Additional Awards
- M3 Challenge Semi-finalist: six team prizes of $1,500
- M3 Challenge Honorable Mention: 22 team prizes of $1,000
- Certificates for all participants
- Schools of the finalist teams receive prizes to support a department, club, or activity
Technical Computing Awards
Technical Computing Awards honor teams for outstanding use of computer programming in their solution. To be eligible, teams must use a programming platform other than spreadsheets. Writing code is not required to participate in or to win M3 Challenge.
Award Amounts
- Technical Computing Winner:
$3,000 team prize - Technical Computing Runner Up:
$2,000 team prize - Technical Computing Third Place:
$1,000 team prize
New to technical computing? Learn technical computing.


Trip to New York City
Finalist teams are invited to an expense paid trip to New York City.
- Finalist teams present their solution to a panel of Ph.D. mathematicians
- The team delivering the best presentation of the day–judged for clarity, presence, and polish–will also win the Outstanding Communication of Results Award (an additional $500 team prize)