Math is not Just for a Select Few
"Who said that math clubs are for nerds?": that's how Iliya Valchanov (on the right in the photo) starts talking about Bocconi Students Mathematics and Logics Association (Bocconi math), as its president. The association brings all people interested in math and other linked disciplines (such as logic and computer science) together, trying to make them more understandable and fun for everyone, not just for skilled people and for math-lovers.
Iliya was born in Varna, in Bulgaria, where for years he participated in various maths competitions. When he came to Milan and started his Biemf (International economics, management and finance), the wish to continue in cultivating his passion was strong. "Math was part of my life and when I found out that Bocconi didn't have an association for this I decided to create one". So he founded Bocconi Math in November 2014 with his best friend Nikola Babić (on the left in the photo), now a graduate of the Finance Master of Science. The main goal of the association is the sharing of knowledge: "We are talking about such extensive disciplines, it is impossible to know everything, this is the reason why it's so important to meet. It must be clear that we are not an élite, our group is open to everyone and organizes events that can turn out to be fun and useful for the Bocconi community as a whole", continues Iliya. These initiatives have in fact often met students' interest as well as their needs.
During the Investment Bank Weekends, the annual recruiting date, the association organized, thanks to the Career service support, a seminar in which members presented and proposed some exercises to help students to train for numerical reasoning tests, a step that everyone interested in applying to get a job in the finance world must be prepared to face. This initiative was really appreciated by students who filled up the room, as also happened for the two editions of Bocconi students trivia challenge, a general knowledge contest. "For those who missed it, we are organizing the third edition", says Jona Bejko, at her second year of Emit (Economics and Management of Innovation and Technology) and a member of the association since March. "This proves that we are not a group of math-addicts, I must admit that I'm not such an expert. One day I was walking near the Velodromo and I bumped into a stand, set up by the association in occasion of the Pi Day. They offered a piece of cake to everyone who managed to solve a math problem and so I decided to stop and have try".