This was our first math modeling problem, and it was a really interesting experience, as it showed that there are no “right” answers in math modeling, only assumptions and justifications. In this problem, the Epsilon school got a certain number of teachers they could hire in preparation for the significantly larger incoming class, but the school wanted to find the fairest way to distribute the teachers amongst the departments. This problem challenged my way of thinking and really showed how important teamwork and communication are in a group setting for a modeling problem.
Modeling the Future Challenge is a competition that is focused on teaching students about the actuarial process. In this challenge, teams decide on a problem that they can make a model of and use the actuarial process to prevent risk. My team chose to focus on airline overbooking, as it has become more of a noticeable problem in airports throughout the years. As well as the details of our own project, this document, which advanced us to the second stage of the challenge, contains our responses to a scenario that MTFC provided to prepare us for using data and statistics in the actuarial process.