About the Department
Mathematics is one of the oldest academic disciplines, valued for its intrinsic beauty, as training in logical and analytical reasoning, and for its widespread applications throughout other disciplines. As our society adopts more technology and collects more data, training in mathematics becomes ever more valuable.
The Department of Mathematics offers a Bachelor of Science with four majors to choose from: Mathematics, Statistics, Data Science (joint program with Computer Science Department) or Mathematics Teacher Education for Grades 9-12; two undergraduate minors: Mathematics and Pre-Actuarial Studies; a Master of Science with two possible concentrations: Mathematics or Statistics; two graduate certificates: Statistics and Operations Research; a 5-year combined B.S./M.S. program, and a number of service courses for various undergraduate and graduate programs. For more on our degrees, click the links to Undergraduate and Graduate Programs at the left.
Students who earn a degree in mathematics have a number of career options.
- They may pursue an advanced degree in mathematics or a closely related area such as statistics, computer science, biometry, information science, or operations research.
- Students who combine mathematics with another discipline that uses mathematics can enhance their pursuit of graduate studies in the second discipline. These areas include biology, chemistry, economics, medicine, physics, and even such areas as sociology, political science, and psychology.
- Mathematics majors may teach at the secondary level.
- Mathematics majors may work in business, industry, or government, areas which increasingly need people with skills in quantitative reasoning and problem solving to deal with statistics, technology, and complicated finances. Often the analytical reasoning developed by a mathematics major is more important to these companies than any specific mathematical technique.
- Many mathematics majors work in the computer industry, in such areas as systems analysis, programming, design of algorithms, or computer graphics. The computer industry is one of the largest employers of mathematicians.
- Many mathematics majors work as actuaries in the insurance industry, applying mathematics and statistics to risk assessment and financial analysis.