<p>I plan on majoring in CS and I'm trying to decide whether to double major in applied math or pure math. I already searched and found a few threads on the topic but most were centered around career / jobs.</p>
<p>I'm not too worried about jobs. Rather, I want to know which math major will improve my fundamental skills the most. That is, I want to improve my logical thinking skills, "creative" problem solving ability, etc. I know that pure math is very theoretical, formal, and proof-oriented, which appeals to me. On the other hand, applied math allows me to actually apply the subject to other fields in creative ways, which also appeals to me (especially because I am also majoring in CS, which overlaps a lot with math).</p>
<p>I can't figure out which major will improve my logical thinking and problem solving more. Which major would you recommend for me?</p>
<p>Well, the majors are described here:</p>
<p>[Course</a> Requirements: Applied Mathematics | Department of Mathematics at University of California Berkeley](<a href=“http://math.berkeley.edu/programs/undergraduate/major/applied]Course”>Course Requirements: Applied Mathematics | Department of Mathematics at University of California Berkeley)
[Course</a> Requirements: Pure Mathematics | Department of Mathematics at University of California Berkeley](<a href=“Meet the Mathematics Undergraduate Advising Community! | Department of Mathematics at University of California Berkeley”>Course Requirements: Pure Mathematics | Department of Mathematics at University of California Berkeley)</p>
<p>They have most of the same courses:</p>
<p>Math 1A, 1B<em>, 53</em>, 54<em>, 55, 104</em>, 110<em>, 113</em>, 185*</p>
<p>*Honors course available.</p>
<p>The four different courses are:</p>
<p>Pure math: two of 128A, [130, 140, 141, 142, or 143], [125A, 135, or 136]; two additional upper division or graduate math courses</p>
<p>Applied math: 128A; three clustered upper division electives in a field of application</p>
<p>Pick based on which set of four courses interest you the most.</p>