RESEARCHED WITH AUTUMN
LSLisa Sauermann
Mathematician; Hausdorff Chair at the University of Bonn; extremal and probabilistic combinatorics; four-time IMO gold medalist
University of Bonn · 
Bonn, Germany · academic
Bonn, Germany · academicLisa Sauermann (born 1992, Dresden) is a German mathematician specializing in extremal and probabilistic combinatorics. She earned her PhD at Stanford under Jacob Fox in 2019, was an Assistant Professor at MIT, and since 2023 holds a Hausdorff Chair at the University of Bonn's Hausdorff Center for Mathematics. As a student she represented Germany at the IMO five times (2007-2011), winning four golds and a silver and taking a perfect score in 2011.
Details
extremal combinatoricsprobabilistic combinatoricsdiscrete mathematicsarithmetic combinatoricscombinatorial geometrymathematicscombinatorics
Notes
- Represented Germany at the IMO from 2007 to 2011, winning gold in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 and silver in 2007 - making her one of the most decorated IMO contestants.2011
- Scored a perfect 42/42 at the 2011 IMO, ranking 1st of all contestants - a result few competitors have achieved.2011
- Received the von Kaven Prize 2023 from the German Research Foundation for outstanding scientific achievements.2023
- Named to a Hausdorff Chair at the University of Bonn's Hausdorff Center for Mathematics in 2023, joining Ana Caraiani, Stefan Mueller and Sven Rady among current chair holders.2023
- Born in Dresden in 1992; studied in Germany and completed her PhD at Stanford under Jacob Fox in 2019, before becoming an MIT Assistant Professor at 28.Sep 10, 2022
- Research focus is probabilistic combinatorics - combinatorial problems attacked with probability-theory methods - an 'applied' style she pursues at Bonn's Institute for Applied Mathematics.2023
- Received two dissertation prizes in 2020: the AWM Dissertation Prize and the Richard Rado Prize.Sep 8, 2020
Experience
Professor of Mathematics (Hausdorff Chair) at University of Bonn
Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
PhD in Mathematics at Stanford University
Assistant Professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Cambridge, MA, USA
PhD candidate at Stanford University
Education
Stanford University
PhD, Mathematics
University of Bonn
Undergraduate, Mathematics
AchievementsRepresented Germany at the International Mathematical Olympiad in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 · Won four IMO gold medals and one silver medal across five appearances · Achieved a perfect score (42/42) at the 2011 IMO, ranking 1st among all contestants · Received the Richard Rado Prize and the AWM Dissertation Prize in 2020 for her PhD thesis · Awarded the von Kaven Prize 2023 by the German Research Foundation (DFG) · Appointed to a Hausdorff Chair at the University of Bonn in 2023
Press
Awardsvon Kaven Award (2023) · AWM Dissertation Prize (2020) · Richard Rado Prize (2020) · Four IMO gold medals and one silver (2007-2011) · Four IMO gold medals (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011) and one silver (2007)
Profiles
Competition record
Germany · IMO