Does It All Add Up?
Why Choose A Mathematics Degree
Maths graduates in the UK can open their doors to a plethora of
careers opportunities from banking and investment to working
for the defence industry to teaching or even pharmaceutical
development. So, if you have a good head for figures and an
inquiring mind then read on…
Well, the above is just a few
examples of the careers that
a mathematics and statistics
degree can open up to you.
Increasingly, employers are
looking for graduates with
strong skills in reasoning and
problem solving - just the
skills that are developed in
a mathematics and statistics
degree.
Let us look at a few examples.
The computing industry
employs mathematics
graduates; indeed, many
university computing courses
are taught by mathematicians.
Mathematics is used to create
the complex programming
at the heart of all computing.
Also cryptography, a form or
pure mathematics, is deployed
to encode the millions of
transactions made hourly
via the Internet and when
we use debit or credit cards.
Mathematics and Computer
Science is a popular degree
choice, and four-year degrees
with a placement in industry
are also available. The
latter give graduates plenty
of relevant experience to
increase their employability.
Mathematics And Finance
Mathematics is also important
in the finance sector.
Sophisticated mathematical
tools - such as the theory
of chaos and time series
forecasting - are used to map
trends on the world’s future
markets. Actuarial science, a
branch of statistics, concerns
itself with the evaluation and
management of financial
risks, particularly those
associated with insurance
companies and pension
funds.
Actuaries are obviously
employed by insurance
companies, but they are
also found in consultancy
practices, government
departments, stock
exchanges, industry and
commerce and universities.
Actuaries are commonly
employed in high-level
management positions
to advise on policy and
strategies.
Mathematics also forms an
important part of accounting,
and many UK institutions
offer Mathematics and Accounting as a degree
option. Many accountancy
companies prefer graduates
to have a joint degree with
mathematics rather than
just a straight accountancy
qualification. Other degree
options include Financial
Mathematics and Business
Mathematics.
Mathematics And Medicine
Medical statistics is an
area of special interest,
and is of vital importance
in the development of
new drugs where trials to
discover cures and side
effects demand careful
statistical analysis. The
use of statistics can speed
up the release of a new
drug and lessen the need
for animal experiments.
Sophisticated statistical
techniques are also used in
the battle against ‘doping in
sport’, and the international
Olympic committee has
employed UK statisticians in
this fight.
Mathematics And Design
In areas of design,
mathematics is obviously
used in the calculation of
stresses and loads within
structures, but what about
modelling the workings of
a microwave oven? In the
latter case, a non-linear
heat equation can be used
to model the heating before
expensive prototypes are
built. Mathematics also
forms the basis of physics,
so a mathematician might
also be employed in space
research, an example
being in the calculation
of trajectories for space
probes. The defence
industry also regularly
employs mathematicians,
and many UK graduates find
their way into QinetiQ and
DSTL.
Mathematics And Teaching
Mathematics is recognised
as a key core subject
fundamental in any education
system. The normal
recognised way into teaching
(either at school or at higher/
further education level) is via
a degree. A normal degree in
the UK takes three years to
complete: to go into teaching
requires a further year’s study
on a Postgraduate Certificate
of Education (PGCE) course
(or similar), before a student
qualifies as a teacher.
The United Kingdom and
other countries are facing
a severe shortage of
mathematics teachers, so
employment prospects in this
area are excellent. Having a
teaching qualification does
not automatically mean that
you have to become a teacher
- many other employers hire
qualified teachers for their
heightened presentation
skills.
Looking To The Future
Hopefully this will have
given you an insight into the
range of careers available
to the graduate with a
mathematics-based degree,
but obviously there are
many other careers such a
graduate could do.
Some students prefer to
carry on with their studies
and enrol on taught MSc,
research MSc/MPhil or
doctorate programmes.
It is important to remember
that mathematics graduates
are generally highly
respected and valued by
potential employers and this
is worth considering when
deciding which degree to do and how best to develop
that beautiful mind!
Author:
Stephen Burke,
Institute of Mathematics
and its Applications
www.ima.org.uk
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