Apurva Nakade
Assistant Teaching Professor, Department of Applied Mathematics & Statistics, Johns Hopkins University
Experience
Assistant Teaching Professor, Johns Hopkins University
2026-Present
Senior Lecturer, Johns Hopkins University
2023-2026
Postdoctoral Lecturer, Northwestern University
2021-2023
Instructor, Causeway Postbaccalaureate Program, Northwestern University
2022
Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Western Ontario
2019-2021
2017-2020
Founder, Organizer and Mentor, Directed Reading Program, University of Western Ontario
2019-2021
Organizer and Mentor, Directed Reading Program, Johns Hopkins University
2017-2019
Exotic Derivatives Trader, Nomura Capital India Pvt Ltd
2010
Education
Ph.D. in Mathematics, Johns Hopkins University
2019
M.Sc. in Mathematics, Chennai Mathematical Institute
2013
B.Tech. in Computer Science & Engineering, IIT Kanpur
2010
Teaching
Instructor, JHU AMS
Summer 2026
Foundational Mathematics of Artificial Intelligence Intermediate Probability and Statistics
Spring 2026
Intro to Computational Math Discrete Math Monte Carlo Methods
Fall 2025
Monte Carlo Methods Discrete Math
Summer 2025
Foundational Mathematics of Artificial Intelligence Intermediate Probability and Statistics
Spring 2025
Discrete Math Monte Carlo Methods Honors Algebra II (online) Intermediate Probability and Statistics
Fall 2024
Discrete Math Monte Carlo Methods Honors Algebra II (online)
Summer 2024
Engineering Innovation
Spring 2024
Graph Theory Linear Algebra and Differential Equations Honors Algebra II (online)
Fall 2023
Discrete Math Freshman Experience
Instructor, Northwestern
Spring 2023
Elementary Differential Equations
Winter 2023
Foundations of Higher Mathematics
2022-23
MENU Linear Algebra and Multivariable Calculus (Coordinator)
Winter, Spring 2022
Introduction to Optimization
2021-22
MENU Linear Algebra and Multivariable Calculus
Fall 2021
Single-Variable Differential Calculus
Instructor, UWO
Winter 2021
Algebraic Topology (graduate level)
Fall 2020
Topology Bootcamp Discrete Structures for Engineering
Winter 2020
Calculus II for Mathematical and Physical Sciences
Fall 2019
Calculus I for Mathematical and Physical Sciences Topics in Category Theory
Instructor, JHU
Fall 2018, 2017
Honors Single Variable Calculus
Intersession 2018
Symmetries & Polynomials
Intersession 2017
Hitchhikers Guide to Algebraic Topology
Summer 2017, 2015
Differential Equations with Applications
Summer 2014
Online Linear Algebra
Instructor, Canada/USA Mathcamp
Summer 2026
Not So Ordinary Least Squares How to Discover the Bell Curve
Summer 2023
Teaching Math to Computers (Lean)
Summer 2021
Curvature Lies Within
Summer 2020
Teaching Math to Computers (Lean) How to Glue Donuts How Riemann Finally Understood the Logarithms
Summer 2019
Crash Course on Linear Algebra Galois Correspondence of Covering Spaces From High School Arithmetic to Group Cohomology Riemann Surfaces Perspectives on Cohomology All Things Manifoldy
Summer 2018
Symmetries and Polynomials How Curved Is a Potato? Cohomology via Sheaves Would I Ever Lie Group to You? The Quantum Spring
Summer 2017
All Things Manifoldy How to Define the Square Root Symmetries of Spaces Euler Characteristic
Papers
Flat principal 2-group bundles and flat string structures, Daniel Berwick-Evans, Emily Cliff, Laura Murray, Apurva Nakade, Emma Phillips, Quantum Symmetries, Contemporary Mathematics, vol. 813, Amer. Math. Soc., Providence, RI, pp. 257-301 (arXiv:2110.07571)
2025
An application of the h-principle to manifold calculus, Journal of Homotopy and Related Structures, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 309-322 (arXiv:1711.07670)
2020
Effect of increasing the energy gap between the two lowest energy states on the mixing time of the Metropolis algorithm (with Somenath Biswas), Information Processing Letters, vol. 112, no. 23, pp. 922-927
2012
Course Design & Materials
- A proof-based numerical analysis course on a free online textbook, with Jupyter notebook assignments and a group final project in place of a final exam
2025-Present
- A growing collection of interactive visualizations for teaching and learning mathematics
AMS Course Explorer, JHU
2025
- An app for navigating the prerequisite graph of Applied Math & Statistics courses
Monte Carlo Methods, JHU
2025
- An online textbook for a semester-long course on simulation, sampling and MCMC
Discrete Mathematics redesign, JHU
2023-Present
- Homework resubmissions, frequent online assessments and restructured exams, built around an adapted open textbook
Introduction to Optimization, Northwestern
2022
- Course notes in R Markdown and Excel modeling assignments for a course on linear programming and duality, rebuilt around applications
Open Textbook for Linear Algebra, Northwestern
2022
- WeBWorK problem sets for a PreTeXt open educational resources textbook
Algebraic Topology, UWO
2021
- Problem sets for a graduate course on the fundamental group, covering spaces and singular homology
Formalizing mathematics in Lean
2020
- Contributions to mathlib’s surreal numbers and convex optimization libraries
2020
- Rebuilt for fully asynchronous delivery: weekly video lectures, hundreds of WeBWorK problems written as a team, and an active discussion forum on Piazza; presented in a talk at a conference on e-assessment in the mathematical sciences
2017-2018
- Two semesters of calculus in one, taught inquiry-based in a flipped classroom
Intersession courses for non-math majors, JHU
2017-2018
- Symmetries & Polynomials: from group theory to the unsolvability of the quintic
- Hitchhiker’s Guide to Algebraic Topology: algebraic topology and its applications
Canada/USA Mathcamp courses
2017-2026
- Week-long courses for advanced high school students, including Teaching Math to Computers (theorem proving in Lean), How to Discover the Bell Curve, Visualizing 3-Manifolds, Riemann Surfaces, Covering Spaces and Cohomology via Sheaves
Grants & Awards
Open Educational Resources Faculty Grant (joint with Dhruv Azad), JHU
2026
- $5000 to develop interactive visualization apps for computational math courses
Open Educational Resources Faculty Grant (joint with Aaron Greicius), NU
2022
- $10000 to develop, use, and publish OER for a linear algebra course
AMS Graduate Student Travel Grant
2019
- $250 travel grant for giving a talk at AMS Sectional Meetings
Service
Member of DS Masters admissions committee in JHU AMS department
2025-2026
Undergraduate Research Coordinator, JHU AMS department
2024-2025
- Helped connect undergraduate students with research mentors
Judge for poster presentations at JHU Matrx Conference
2025
Judge for poster presentations at MAA MD-DC-VA Section Meeting
Fall 2024
- A yearlong experience in mathematics that seeks to increase the number of graduate students in the mathematical sciences from historically underrepresented groups
Directed Reading Program, UWO, JHU
2017-2021
- Started DRP at UWO in Fall 2019
- Organizer and mentor for DRP at JHU and UWO
Professional Development
Faculty Forward Fellowship, JHU
2025
Introduction to Education Research Workshop, JHU
2023
MAA Section NExT Fellow, MD-DC-VA Section, 2023 cohort
2023-25
Mathematical Association of America Member
2020-Present
MAA Project NExT Fellow, Brown’20 cohort
2020
2019
Participated in several workshops by the Centre for Teaching and Learning at UWO
2019-2020
Participated in the MSRI Critical Issues in Mathematics Education Workshop
2022
Participated in the MAA Modeling Inspiration for Differential Equations Workshop
2022
Participated in online Mastery Grading Workshop
2019
Attended the Science of Learning Symposium, JHU
2014-2018
Talks
Discrete Chern–Simons via 2-group bundles on elliptic curves, CMS Session on Homotopy Theory
2020
What is a Spectrum?, University of Western Ontario, Basic Notions Seminar
2020
Manifold calculus and the \(h\)-principle
2017-2019
- University of Regina, Geometry & Topology Seminar, 2019
- University of Western Ontario, Geometry & Topology Seminar, 2019
- University of Rochester, Topology Seminar, 2019
- Workshop on Functor Calculus, Ohio State University, 2019
- Spaces of Embeddings, BIRS, Banff, 2019
- AMS Special Session in Homotopy Theory, UC Riverside, 2017
Weiss fibration sequence, MIT Talbot Workshop
2019
Constructing a Homotopy Type for Triply-Graded Link Homology, AMS Sectional Meeting, University of Hawaii
2019
Homotopy colimits and limits, European Autumn School in Topology
2017
Conferences Attended
Spring 2024
Fall 2023
2022
Project NExT at MAA Mathfest, Online
2021
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Spaces of Embeddings, BIRS, Banff
2019
MSRI Summer School, Cortona, Italy
2019
MRC Workshop, Providence RI
2019
MIT Talbot Workshop, Austin TX
2019
Workshop on Functor Calculus, Ohio State University
2019
AMS Sectional Meeting, University of Hawaii
2019
Arizona Winter School, Arizona State University
2019
Joint Mathematical Meetings, Baltimore
2019
Symplectic Geometry and Homotopy Theory, UCLA
2018
MSRI Summer School, Fields Institute, Toronto
2018
Graduate Student Conference, Temple University
2018
AMS Sectional Meeting, UC Riverside
2017
European Autumn School in Topology, Netherlands
2017
Topology Festival, Cornell University
2017
Georgia International Topology Conference, University of Georgia
2017
Alpine Algebraic & Applied Topology Conference, Switzerland
2016
WCATSS, University of Oregon, Eugene
2016
GSTSC, Indiana University, Bloomington
2016
Mid-Atlantic Topology Conference, Johns Hopkins University
2016
Midwest Topology Seminar, Northwestern University
2016
Geometry and Topology Conference, Lehigh University
2015
Mid-Atlantic Topology Conference, University of Virginia
2015
Midwest Topology Seminar, University of Illinois Chicago
2015
Midwest Topology Seminar, Northwestern University
2015
Modular invariants in Topology and Analysis, Regensburg
2015
WCATSS on Field theories, UBC
2015
Introductory Workshop on Algebraic Topology, MSRI
2015
Joint Mathematical Meetings, Baltimore
2015
Classification of Manifolds, NEHU
2013
H-principle, Chennai Mathematical Institute
2012
Groups and geometries, ISI, Bangalore
2012
String Topology, Vivekananda University
2012
Kervaire Invariant One, ISI, Kolkata
2012
Number Theory workshop, Tezpur University
2011
Lie algebras and their representations, CMI
2011
Nurture camp, Institute of Mathematical Sciences
2007
IMO, Slovenia
2006
IMOTC, HBCSC
2003-2006
Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana (KVPY)
2005