<p>are there any math majors currently at princeton or planning on majoring in math at princeton? I'm kind of undecided about physics or math. i got an 800 on both math II and physics, so i guess my skills are about equal, but i hear that math is harder to major in. </p>
<p>any advice?</p>
<p>i, too, am curious about majoring in math. how crazy genius are math majors at princeton? if i qualified for aime in high school but am nowhere near usamo level, would i get wrecked majoring in math at princeton?</p>
<p>I’m also curious (I’m thinking about majoring in math).</p>
<p>I know some people who take the analytical math courses/major in it, and they’re all pretty brilliant. I mean, everyone at Princeton’s smart, but these kids definitely know their stuff. I would recommend taking one of the intro courses for majors (I think it’s like MAT 214), and seeing if you like it/can keep up. As for how it compares to physics–I’m not really sure. Most of the kids I know who take the analytical/math major sequence also were in PHY 105-6 last year, so I think there’s a fair amount of overlap in those groups. But as smart as people are, I would say they’re definitely collaborative, very often doing problem sets together. </p>
<p>If you’re not sure you’ll love it, a good idea might be to take 5 classes in the fall at the beginning, so you can drop one later. Most advisers won’t let you do this unless you promise them to drop one. A lot of people do this–they pick 3 courses they’ll definitely take, and then 2 iffy courses, and then they can choose between them later. Once people figure out that they can do this, most people do it every semester–I’m enrolled in 6 for the fall semester, for example. It’s a good insurance to have, because it’s often inconvenient or impossible (if it’s full) to add a new course once it gets a few weeks into classes.</p>
<p>The only tricky part is buying books, as it has to be done strategically. Make sure you understand the return policy at Labyrinth before buying more books than you need. Alternatively (this is what I do) try to survive without the books for those classes before you make your decision. I’m not sure about math classes, but many required texts for humanities/social sciences can be found at one of the libraries (or through Borrow Direct if Princeton’s out).</p>
<p>@Ice
Math and physics are BOTH hard (probably the 2 hardest majors) at Princeton. Major in the one you are more interested in, not the one that is easier. Take MAT 215 and PHYS 105 fall semester as those are vital introductory courses for math and physics majors. Realize it is going to be a lot of work (math weekly problem sets should take somewhere around ~10-15 hours, I don’t know about physics since I never took it) , but since you seem like you already know you’re picking math or physics, it shouldn’t be too bad. By the way, don’t choose MAT 214 over MAT 215. Even though they both teach you proofs, the content in MAT 215 will be way more helpful for a math major (i.e. you can take MAT 218 later on after you’ve taken 215). Also, getting an 800 on Math 2c and 800 on physics has nothing to do with which one you are better at. It does show that you don’t suck really bad at math and physics though, which is good. Anyways, majoring math = doing proofs, and majoring in physics = doing really hard physics problems that make SAT II problems very elementary in comparison. This is why Princeton is such a great place to major in physics or math! You get to learn extremely difficult stuff, but will be rewarded greatly if you genuinely like math/physics :)</p>
<p>@GiantsFan123
There are USAMO’s, honorable mentions, winners, as well as IMO people (the international kids) here. However, you won’t know if you will get wrecked in majoring in math until you try. Qualifying for AIME is nice, but I am guessing you’ve never done proof-based math. If you truly feel majoring in math is a possible option, definitely give it a try and take MAT 215 fall semester. Don’t let the fact you’ve never made USAMO scare you. I know a math major who never made USAMO and he is doing just fine. MAT 215 is going to be hard, but who knows, maybe you can handle it and even better, find it interesting 
If it doesn’t turn out this way, and you feel the content is not what you like, or the workload is way too hard for you to continue, just drop the class during the 1st week or 2. It’s better to give it a try, than to give up early and miss something that may have been your passion.</p>
<p>As a final piece of advice, during the orientation week, do not miss the opportunity to talk to math and physics professors (as well as current math/physics majors!) and tell them about your situations and worries. They will provide you very very helpful details.</p>
<p>I’m a compsci major btw, but I hope this stuff helped. It would be definitely more helpful if you can find a way to talk to an actual math/physics major.</p>
<p>Just wanted to replace my last paragraph with this one:</p>
<p>I hope this stuff helped. I’m a compsci major btw, but I did take MAT 214 which has the same workload as MAT 215, and I’ve talked to a lot of math/physics majors, so I do have some degree of knowledge as to what I am talking about. It would be definitely more helpful though if you can find a way to talk to an actual math/physics major.</p>
<p>awesomely helpful thread. i’ve been looking for information about this too (i’m also interested in doing something math/physics/compsci). </p>
<p>JTC007, opqpop, your comments are really helpful. thanks!</p>
<p>also, i want to maybe major in comp sci and get a certificate in math. is anyone else doing that or have any information on how that works (what courses to take, etc. - also, i wanna do the integrated science thing if that’s relevant…)</p>
<p>Ditto. This was really helpful. I’m a prospective math major and I’ve been unsure on math classes for freshman year. Now I think I’ll take MAT 215 in the fall.</p>
<p>@Rupac:</p>
<p>I’m sure there are people majoring in comp sci with a certificate in math because the 2 relate to each other very well, especially in the area of theoretical comp sci. The courses you take are just the regular core comp sci major courses + math courses required for the math certificate. </p>
<p>For computer sci, the path goes COS 126 (which you can place out if you got 5 on AP Compsci AB), then COS 217 or 226, then the other from 217/226 you didn’t take (i.e. you need both of them). I recommend 226 first since it’s taught in java, making the transition from 126 (which is also in java) to 226 much easier. 217 on the other hand is in C, so the transition may be kind of rough. After these course cos courses, you start branching out into whatever COS courses you think are interesting, while following the comp sci major’s requirement of taking at least 2 theory, 2 systems, and 2 applications courses. See here for more detailed info: [Undergraduate</a> Program of Study :: Princeton Computer Science](<a href=“http://www.cs.princeton.edu/academics/ugradpgm/program]Undergraduate”>http://www.cs.princeton.edu/academics/ugradpgm/program)</p>
<p>For the math certificate, you can find details here: [Course</a> of Study](<a href=“http://www.pacm.princeton.edu/ugrad/cos.shtml]Course”>http://www.pacm.princeton.edu/ugrad/cos.shtml)</p>
<p>The 300 level math courses that have a lot of proofs will probably have MAT 215/217/218 requirements, whereas those that don’t will probably have MAT 201/202/203/204 requirements. </p>
<p>As a CS major in BSE (which I think everyone does because doing it from BA = more humanities classes & less quantitative classes), you need to take MAT 201/202 or MAT 203/204.</p>
<p>Integrated science includes COS 126, 2 semesters of physics, and 2 semester of chemistry I believe. Hence, it’s a nice option if you’re interested in majoring in BSE Computer Science because it will fulfill most of the engineering requirements. If you want to major in math, and you do integrated science, it doesn’t really make much sense unless you just really wanted to try it out. Note integrated science counts as 2 classes for both semesters, so it will consume a good chunk of your time. If you want to major in physics, and you do integrated science, it probably won’t be as good as taking PHYS 105/106, since those are harder and will help you out more later (I think…good if someone can confirm).
Here’s the site on integrated science: [Princeton</a> University - Integrated Science - Curriculum](<a href=“http://www.princeton.edu/integratedscience/curriculum/]Princeton”>http://www.princeton.edu/integratedscience/curriculum/)</p>
<p>There are lots of physics majors taking integrated science-- integrated science while it counts as 105/106, doesn’t cover exactly the same information. This puts you at a disadvantage in 203/205 (classical mechanics), since integrated basically skips mechanics. You are at the same level as the rest of the physics majors in quantum and e&m, while you are far ahead of them in thermo since integrated covers a decent amount of thermo. Thus while you start off behind, since you take 203/205 sophomore fall, it evens out by the end.</p>
<p>thanks for all the helpful replies. some more questions: </p>
<p>for a physics major, how important is it to take 105/106 instead of 103/104? Will it make a huge difference later on? also (for a physics major), how important is it to take math 203/204 as opposed to 201/202? i ask mainly because i’m not totally set on physics so i dont want to get screwed taking the harder classes. at the same time i dont want to get screwed later on by taking the easier ones now, (if i do end up as a physics major) where kids will be more prepared than me in later classes since they took the more advanced version.</p>
<p>the 105/106 makes a big difference, the 201/202 not so much.</p>
<p>thanks. another question lol sorry. </p>
<p>i’ve heard a couple of people say that its easier to go from BSE to AB, but I was still wondering how difficult it would be to go from AB to BSE after freshman year? Specifically, if I took math 201-202 and phy 105-106 freshman year. I know that I would still have to take cos 126 and chem 201 (no AP credit in either of those), so would that put me behind in terms of taking actual engineering courses?</p>
<p>Dude, GiantsFan123, you’re exactly like me in terms of academic interests and apprehension. I am also thinking about majoring in physics but I’m not sure how tough its gonna be. I also have the same dilemma regarding MAT 201/203 and the whole AB vs. BSE choice. I think since the physics pre reqs overlap so much with the BSE reqs, it’s not going to be that hard to switch even into sophomore year.</p>
<p>you wouldn’t be too far behind-- just make sure to take 5 classes in the spring of freshman year (which I would recommend anyway), that way you won’t be course deficient going into your sophomore year. You might want to see if you could fit cos126 into your schedule in the spring as well, just to get it out of the way</p>