Mathematicians...?

... is anyone here interested in/going to college for/intending to go to college for mathematics?

It would be interesting to know... ^_^

Plus I have an idea in this arena, but I'm not sure if many other people happen to have a career interest in this.

I decided I'm going to be a science guy.

Plus I'm not in college yet, so I can't help. xD

The number of people entering college intending to go into mathematics gets exponentially smaller as they continue through college. College math is insane next to high school stuff.

Insane? Well, compared to the math coming out of high schools, this is true. My experience is that most students coming out of high school are underprepared for math. So where most grads ought to be ready for calculus, most of them are stuck re-learning algebra and precalculus before they even get to calculus.

Math is difficult, but at least it is on a linear path. Their is only one correct answer and if you follow the steps properly, you will always get the correct answer. All that one needs to do in math is to learn these steps and apply them correctly.

The trick to surviving college math is taking one math class a semester. Don't even dare take a break from them for a semester: chances are you will forget what you learned. With successive classes, you will build upon what you learned last semester. You'll still forget stuff, but the amount of stuff you forgot wouldn't be as big.

Then again I'm a math tutor.

I am staying as FAR AWAY FROM MATH as humanly possible. If you couldn't tell, math and I dont really get along very well. Infact, I hate it wiht the passion of a thousand fiery flames.

DreamDeep,

As I believe you already know, I am working on my Master's in Applied Mathematics. I have a BSc in Mathematics, and I am working for my BSc in Chemical Engineering (only one year left!).

sabradan wrote:I am staying as FAR AWAY FROM MATH as humanly possible. If you couldn't tell, math and I dont really get along very well. Infact, I hate it wiht the passion of a thousand fiery flames.

I'm in the exact same boat as that.

I actually have to take a Calc class, (and I want to), in 12th grade, and everyone is expected to take Precalc and Trig(I'm not sure if you have to or not, but if you dont fail anything thats where you end up). Personally, I do want to go into math whether or not I use it in a job blah blah blah, simply because I know I can use it on the side in Computer Programming(graphics, ai, games ). And because math is awesome.

I'm actually a pursuing my Bachelor's in Mathematics right now. I suppose the important part to deciding if you want it or not is figuring out what you want to do with it. For instance, while I do want to go into education, I'm also interested in pursuing how it is present in fields such as economics. And of course you can take it into Physics, Computer Science, and all of those other sciences too. So if you're interested, and especially if you have an idea, by all means pursue it.

That being said, LamaLama has a very valid point. Higher level math, especially proof based stuff, is pretty darn scary. Good study habits/work ethic are pretty important.