Ivan Morozov moves on to the Math PhD program at the CUNY Graduate Center
Aug. 20, 2026
Ivan Morozov transferred from City Tech in 2023, and completed his B.S. in Pure Mathematics with minors in Physics and in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences in 2025. He complete our Masters in Mathematics this year and is starting the PhD program in Mathematics this Fall at the CUNY Graduate Center.
Congratulations, Ivan, for all that you have already accomplished! We wish you the best of luck going forward!
Below, Ivan shares some information about his experience in his own words:
I dreamed of becoming a physicist because I was fascinated by the endless complexity and consistency found in nature. When I was a child, I learned that the mathematics of symmetries in 3-dimensional space explains why crystals form according to one of seven crystal systems; I also learned that the current model of gravity describes motions of massive objects along geodesics in curved space-time. To understand these kinds of ideas thoroughly, I had to dedicate more time to studying mathematics. Knowing maths gave me tools to find new kinds of connections within natural systems, and it turned out that I really enjoyed engaging with the abstract world of mathematics itself. So, I started learning more about it on its own.
In studying maths, I kept encountering more questions that did not yet have a solution. This surprised me, and when I arrived at City Tech and later City College, I was welcomed by a community of scholars who were actively pushing the boundaries of such questions. I felt encouraged to think thoroughly about ideas that I wanted to explore, and to situate these ideas within the venerable mathematical tradition – something I hadn’t done before. I saw the field in a new light that was more about creation and exploration, and which felt closer to philosophy and art rather than to science.
Apart from mathematics, I’m an active clarinettist, and as an artist, I felt this perspective deeply resonate with me. For me, playing music is a personal endeavour, and achieving the final result of learning a piece is only a fraction of what I actually end up learning. The vast majority of it comes from months of practicing. Even if I don’t achieve a desirable final result, I know I will walk away with a richer breadth and depth of skill.
After years of toiling with mathematics, I started to see the world in a similar way. We might never have all the answers, regardless of the field we pursue, and yet we still push for progress. There is something very human about pioneering simply because we can, and I treasure this creative endeavour in itself more than just having the answers. As J.R.R. Tolkien beautifully wrote of Aragorn, “Not all those who wander are lost.”
I am thankful to have been admitted to the PhD program at the Graduate Center, starting this fall. The journey ahead will undoubtedly be long and demanding, but right now, I’m excited to acquaint myself with the wonderful community of mathematicians, deepen my understanding of the field, and do research on my own and with professors there.
I want to thank Professor Satyanand Singh for first showing me the mathematics world and mentoring me in research, from my first to my most recent, as well as inclining me towards number theory. I’m grateful to all the faculty I had the luck to study under, and especially to Professors Gautam Chinta, Sean Cleary, Brooke Feigon, and Pat Hooper for their immense encouragement and mentorship. You have all made this a really enjoyable chapter in my life.
