Math at Amherst

<p>Does anyone have an opinion of or information about the math department at Amherst? I’m looking for opinions based on either personal experience or “someone-you-know” (as opposed to what you’ve read online, in books, etc.). </p>

<p>Please note that I’m not looking for comparisons with other schools. Have you employed or worked with Amherst math grads? Do they know their stuff? Did you or do you currently attend as a math major? Or your son or daughter? If so, what did you think of the department? Robust? Interesting classes?</p>

<p>Thanks in advance for your comments…</p>

<p>I am currently a freshman, and I’ve taken two Math courses in the last two semesters. I would say Amherst has a somewhat strong Math dept. Most professors are very good and interested in teaching(there are exceptions). It’s a fairly small dept thought(4-5 professors). I am a prospective major, and would say Math at Amherst is not bad, and as far as I know, Math graduates do fairly well after graduation, with more than half of them going to grad schools. However, it’s a common knowledge that the comprehensive exam(you need to pass that to get the major) is extremely hard.</p>

<p>All that being said, Math here is good, but it is not like other departments that Amherst is famous for(Polisci and Philosophy are big here). If your math interests are very serious, you should go to a research university. If you love small colleges and just happen to be a Math major, Amherst would be perfect(it’s actually a good match for virtually anyone).</p>

<p>Thanks for the feedback.</p>