Help me think...careers in math?

<p>Many mathematicians and ops research students go into modeling and simulation which is used in design/development of products (from cars to airplanes and other things). Very good field and much in demand. Math is also used in development of sports items (think of the new swimming suits - the flow dynamics had to be modeled).</p>

<p>I knew you guys would be helpful. :)</p>

<p>Color me dumb, but I have no idea what an actuary is/does!!!!</p>

<p>MidwestMom, I will definitely check out and have him check out the applied statistician link and Chance magazine....very interesting....</p>

<p>I have recommended this article from the January 23, 2006 issue of Business Week to a number of students - Why Math Will Rock Your World.
Math</a> Will Rock Your World</p>

<p>The above article is dated 2006, for 2008, it's beware of the geeks bearing formulas. </p>

<p>Hedgefinger:</a> Buffett: “Beware of geeks bearing formulas”
Beware</a> of Geeks Bearing Formulas Organizations and Markets</p>

<p>Math + baseball ? As mentioned by others in earlier posts, "sabermetrics" and I highly recommend Michael Lewis' book, Moneyball. It is a very entertaining book about how Billy Beane as manager of the Oakland A's used statistical analysis to help him find productive players on a very tight budget. I think the Boston Red Sox has a guy that does similar analysis. (Probably all teams do by now). </p>

<p>I loved the chapter about Chad Bradford. :D</p>

<p>And didn't I get an email from Monsterdotcom that MLB was looking for statisticians??</p>

<p>All I know about actuaries is that the woman who was competing to win the crossword tournament in the movie Wordplay was an actuary.</p>

<p>From the "Be an Actuary" website: Be</a> An Actuary - What is an Actuary?</p>

<p>What is an Actuary?</p>

<p>The future is uncertain. Some of the events that can happen are undesirable. "Risk" is the possibility that an undesirable event will occur. Actuaries are experts in:</p>

<pre><code>* Evaluating the likelihood of future events
* Designing creative ways to reduce the likelihood of undesirable events
* Decreasing the impact of undesirable events that do occur.
</code></pre>

<p>The impact of undesirable events can be both emotional and financial. Reducing the likelihood of these events helps relieve emotional pain. But some events, such as death, cannot be totally avoided. So, reducing their financial impact is very important. Actuaries are the leading professionals in finding ways to manage risk. It takes a combination of strong analytical skills, business knowledge and understanding of human behavior to design and manage programs that control risk.</p>

<p>To summarize, actuaries look at the statistics of insurance. They figure out when people will die so the insurance companies can adjust rates, forecast how often fires will happen, etc. You can be a pessimist and just think about the tragedy of it all or you can think about how you are helping so many people by developing rates which are appropriate for them.</p>

<p>Read "The Numerati" by Stephen Baker.</p>

<p>NJres-Yup, the Red Sox employ Bill James, probably the most innovative person in the field of baseball statistics/sabermetrics ever. And, as a huge Red Sox fan looking to go into sports statistics, my idol. </p>

<p>Sorry, that post wasn't helpful at all.</p>

<p>Someone who is good at math and can communicate well will be promoted rapidly.</p>

<p>Someone beat me to recommending reading "Moneyball". Great book!</p>

<p>Anyway, careers with a degree in math: really, any analytical field. Being able to analyze trends is incredibly useful in many, many fields. I know math majors who've become financial advisors, and some who've become spacecraft engineers. System engineering is another possible field for anyone with an analytical bent.</p>

<p>Math is a great major to do. Best part- no labs, no spills, no injuries.</p>

<p>The MAA actually has a website with math careers on it (they also have a brochure and some books -- they're listed on the website).
Student</a> Careers</p>

<p>Biostatisticians are employed by the government and industry to design and analyze clinical trials, i.e., studies of new drugs and medical devices. It can be very rewarding, especially for the quantitative person who is also interested in medicine.</p>

<p>Most major league sports teams, especially baseball, have a "statistician." At the very least they maintain the statistics on the performance of the players on the team and in their 'system" (farm system). This level of statistical analysis is little more than accounting. </p>

<p>However, an increasing number of teams have sabermetrically oriented statisticians, who use those player performance statistics plus perhaps scouting statistics to analyze the overall performance and prospects of their players -- as well as those of other players in professional baseball, colleges, and high school. They do this to assess career development and prospects, to assess prospective trades, and to advise in the major league draft of amateur players.</p>

<p>Among the major league teams that appear to have a full-time "director of statistics" to do this kind of thing are the Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Tampa Bay Rays. But most others are more favorably oriented toward this kind of analysis now than ever before.</p>

<p>Major League Baseball (see The</a> Official Site of Major League Baseball | MLB.com: Homepage) and other sports analysis organizations employ statisticians for a variety of purposes. For example, some are evaluating the electronic trackers of pitches (Pitch/fx) that most major league parks are now using. Some are evaluating prospects.</p>

<p>That said, although there are many numbers-oriented blogs and websites, there are relatively few full-time jobs or careers doing statistical analysis of sports. Most sabermetricians are hobbyists or part-timers. For a sampling of their work, look at Baseball</a> Prospectus, BaseballHQ.com</a> - Fantasy Baseball, The</a> Hardball Times, and Tango</a> on Baseball. Or, in basketball look at Basketball</a> Prospectus and in football look at FOOTBALL</a> OUTSIDERS: Football analysis and NFL stats for the Moneyball era - Authors of Pro Football Prospectus 2008. There are several more such site.</p>

<p>If your son wants a taste of this work, he should visit those sites. If he's by any chance a fantasy sports player, he's no doubt encountered references to these sites because in effect they provide a lot of the information that fantasy players look for in drafting players and managing their fantasy teams. Many of these sites employ interns.</p>

<p>In the case of one individual who has been referred to a couple of times on this thread (Nate Silver), he started out with an interest in baseball, did fantasy baseball for many years, went into accounting for a few years after college, developed a "player performance forecasting system" (PECOTA) in his spare time, then joined one of the sabermetrically inclined websites. Thus a career was born, which in the last year has moved into doing political forecasting in the presidential election, appearances on national tv, and a lucrative book contract.</p>

<p>This is a rare path, but if your son has the ambition and talent and is willing to work incessantly there's room for him to carve out a career using math/statistics skills.</p>

<p>Of course, there are many more opportunities to do applied statistical work in industry and government (imagine, for example, modeling climate change or traffic patterns) or theoretical and applied work in many academic disciplines. There is plenty of work for math geeks, including those who can speak well and write well.</p>

<p>Website with lots of resources on "Careers in Math": Cool</a> math - Careers in Math ( Mathematics )</p>

<p>vicariousparent, that's exactly why I became a math major, many years ago. Too many acid burns while studying to be a chem major. Then, after abstract algebra, I switched to a stat major and never looked back. There's just so much one can do with statistics.</p>