Mathematics, as Galileo said, is the language in which the universe is written. It is a subject of great beauty, utility, and scope that is not only fundamental to all other disciplines in STEM but fascinating in its own right. Exploring mathematics in its many forms within a community of like-minded peers fosters creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration, thereby equipping students with tools to succeed in a wide range of settings. Undergraduate students majoring in Mathematics benefit from a unique curriculum that leverages the research strengths of the department and offers great flexibility.
The Bachelor of Science in Mathematicsprogram offers a broad background in mathematics appropriate for students planning to pursue a career in industry while providing the depth and rigor required for graduate studies in mathematics or related fields. Students majoring in Mathematics may concentrate their studies in one of several areas, including pure mathematics, data science, and computational algebra. Moreover, the program gives students ample opportunities to pursue theirinterests, in particular through its research spine, a sequence of courses integrated into each year of the curriculum that gives all students the opportunity to conduct original mathematical research.
TheBachelor of Science in Mathematics program has the following objectives and outcomes.
Mathematics Concentration Curriculum
The undergraduate curriculum in Mathematics consists of:
- 21 core courses in mathematics spanning a wide range of mathematical disciplines and culminating in a research project conducted in the senior year
- 5 elective math courses (called technical electives) that may be chosen by the student and that may include graduate courses
- 5 science courses and 1 science lab, including courses on computer science and physics, and including 2 science electives that may be chosen by the student
- 5 humanities courses, 3 of which are electives that may be chosen by the student
- 5 additional elective courses that may be chosen by the student to pursue other academic goals, such as a minor, double major, master's degree, or simply acquiring knowledge in particular fields of interest
- 5 courses that comprise the SUCCESS core curriculum, including 4 seminars and 1 course on entrepreneurship
- 1 course on either macroeconomics or microeconomics
See below for a sample study plan, and note that courses do not need to be taken in exactly the order shown here. Students with AP credit (for the calculus courses MA 121 and MA 122, for instance) may take more advanced courses (such as MA 125 and MA 126) in their first semester. Students should meet with an academic advisor to determine how best to meet the program requirements and how to choose electives so as to achieve their academic goals. See the notes following the sample study plan for more details on the program requirements.
Term I
| HASS 103 | Writing and Communications Colloquium | 3 |
| CH 115 | General Chemistry I | 3 |
| CS 115 | Introduction to Computer Science | 4 |
| MA 121 | Differential Calculus | 2 |
| MA 122 | Integral Calculus | 2 |
| PEP 111 | Mechanics | 3 |
| Science Lab | 1 |
Term II
| HASS 105 | Knowledge, Nature, Culture | 3 |
| MA 125 | Vectors and Matrices | 2 |
| MA 126 | Multivariable Calculus I | 2 |
| MA 188 | Seminar in Mathematical Sciences | 1 |
| PEP 112 | Electricity and Magnetism | 3 |
| Science Elective | 3 |
Term III
| BT 243 | Macroeconomics | 3 |
| Or | ||
| BT 244 | Microeconomics | 3 |
| MA 221 | Differential Equations | 4 |
| MA 225 | Infinite Series | 2 |
| MA 226 | Multivariable Calculus II | 2 |
| G.E. | General Elective | 3 |
| Humanities | 3 |
Term IV
| MA 222 | Probability and Statistics | 3 |
| MA 231 | Nonlinear Optimization | 2 |
| MA 232 | Linear Algebra | 3 |
| MA 240 | Proofs and Refutations | 3 |
| G.E. | General Elective | 3 |
| Humanities | 3 |
Term V
| MA 331 | Intermediate Statistics | 3 |
| MA 441 | Introduction to Mathematical Analysis | 3 |
| T.E. | Free Technical Elective | 3 |
| T.E. | Technical Elective | 3 |
| Humanities | 3 |
Term VI
| MA 234 | Complex Variables with Applications | 3 |
| MA 336 | Modern Algebra | 3 |
| MA 346 | Numerical Methods | 3 |
| T.E. | Technical Elective | 3 |
| Science Elective | 3 |
Term VII
| MA 410 | Differential Geometry | 3 |
| MA 498 | Senior Research Project I | 3 |
| T.E. | Free Technical Elective | 3 |
| T.E. | Technical Elective | 3 |
| Humanities | 3 |
Term VIII
| G.E. | General Elective | 3 |
| T.E. | Technical Elective | 3 |
| T.E. | Technical Elective | 3 |
| T.E. | Technical Elective | 3 |
Notes:
(1) Science Electives: Students must take CS 115, PEP 111, and PEP 112. They must also take one science lab, which may be CH 117, BIO 182, or PEP 221, and two additional science electives, one of which must be at the 200-level or higher. Science electives may include computer science courses or the courses PEP 151 and PEP 152.
(2) Technical Electives may be any 3-credit math courses at the 300-level or higher that are not core program requirements. Pre-approved technical electives include MA 335, MA 360, MA 361, MA 442, MA 463, MA 464, MA 499, MA 503, MA 525, MA 526, MA 544, MA 550, MA 552, MA 564, MA 565, MA 567, MA 575, MA 576, and MA 577. Students who wish to count a course not on this list as a technical elective should speak with an academic advisor.
Students must take either MA 498 or MA 499 to satisfy the senior research requirement. Students may take both and count MA 499 as a technical elective.
(3) General Electives may be any courses. They may include courses used to fulfill minor, double major, or master's degree requirements, as well as language courses or courses taken while studying abroad.
(4)SUCCESS Core Curriculum:Students must complete requirements includingPRV 101, and three (3) courses fromPRV 201,PRV 202,PRV 203,PRV 204,PRV 205.
(5) Humanities: Please see theHumanities Requirements for specific requirements.
Either BT 243 or BT 244 may be taken to satisfy the economics requirement. Students who take both courses may use one in place of a 200-level humanities elective.
Pure Mathematics Concentration Curriculum
Take any three of the following courses:
| MA 335 | Elementary Number Theory | 3 |
| MA 442 | Real Variables | 3 |
| MA 550 | Introduction to Lie Theory | 3 |
| MA 552 | Axiomatic Linear Algebra | 3 |
In consultation with an advisor and upon receiving permission to enroll, students may also count 600-level math courses towards this concentration.
Data Science Concentration Curriculum
Take any two of the following courses:
| MA 544 | Numerical Linear Algebra for Big Data | 3 |
| MA 576 | Optimization for Data Science | 3 |
| MA 577 | Statistical Network Analysis | 3 |
| MA 641 | Time Series Analysis I | 3 |
| MA 654 | Topological Data Analysis | 3 |
And take one of the following machine learning courses:
| CS 559 | Machine Learning: Fundamentals and Applications | 3 |
| CPE 595 | Applied Machine Learning | 3 |
Computational Algebra Concentration Curriculum
Take any three of the following courses:
| MA 503 | Discrete Mathematics for Cryptography | 3 |
| MA 552 | Axiomatic Linear Algebra | 3 |
| MA 564 | Mathematics of Post-Quantum Cryptography | 3 |
| MA 565 | Quantum Algorithms | 3 |
| MA 567 | Computational Algebraic Geometry | 3 |
