Deciding between Mathematics or Engineering

College Majors Engineering Majors
1

<p>Hello all, I am in a pickle. At the moment I am at a community college with hopes of transferring to UH when the proper time arises. In other words I do not want to go there until I must, money issues. </p>

<p>But I have been researching and reading lots of things on engineering and the different fields, but none of them have really, really, stood out to me as something I would really want to do. Then I heard about a straight math major, and the more theory it brings but less flexibility. </p>

<p>But basically why I am here posting is I NEED HELP narrowing down and deciding which field to pursue!!! I am currently In calculus 1, I love it, and I always have loved Math, and always find pleasure learning new things in math and mastering the techniques until they were second nature. </p>

<p>Again please LEAD me to any sites, articles, books, videos, ANYTHING that will help explain and differentiate the two fields, Thanks SOOO much??</p>

<p>whats the difference between BS in Math or a BA in Math?</p>

2

<p>To answer your first question, unless you plan on going into academia (in which you will need a PhD), you may want to consider “applied” mathematics. Applied mathematics (like applied physics) will come closest to interacting with engineering. It is also possible to get a B.A./B.S. in applied math and go on to get a M.S./M.Eng in engineering but your graduate engineering degree will be limited to disciplines like industrial engineering, systems engineering, engineering mechanics or the emerging area of computational engineering/science.</p>

<p>As for your second question about B.A. vs. B.S. in Math, the answer is…depends on the school. I know that is a vague answer but let me give you details on why it depends on the school.</p>

<p>In some schools, the B.A. in Math will require 1-to-3 less math courses and won’t require the calculus-based physics or introductory chemistry, while requiring more liberal arts courses (read: foreign languages, cultural/diversity courses).</p>

<p>In few other schools, the B.A. in Math will require the SAME amount math courses and won’t require the calculus-based physics or introductory chemistry, while requiring more liberal arts courses (read: foreign languages, cultural/diversity courses).</p>

<p>In a few other schools, the B.A. in Math will require 1-to-3 less math courses while requiring more liberal arts courses (read: foreign languages, cultural/diversity courses) for the purpose of allowing enough elective courses to either dual major (with computer science, economics, etc).</p>

<p>All depends on the school.</p>

<p>Now here is MY $0.05 on choosing a certain math program. Choose the version of the degree that will meet YOUR needs because employers do not care if the degree is a B.A. or a B.S. You have good schools like a Cal-Berkeley or Vanderbilt who only offer a B.A. in math (and Cal-Berkeley is highly ranked). You have schools like UCLA who offer only a M.A. at the graduate level but are highly-ranked in applied mathematics (at the grad level).</p>

<p>Like a I mentioned before, I would consider and more applied math degree. It is more marketable. Also, although on this site we are usually against double/dual majors, probably mathematics and computer science are the only 2 disciplines that should be considered for a double/dual major if anything.</p>

<p>Note: I did both. My B.S. is in Computational Mathematics (basically a math/CS hybrid degree) and my M.S. is in Engineering (no engineering specialization on my degree but it was geared more to systems engineering).</p>

<p>Hope this helps.</p>