I’m interested in dual majoring in English and applied mathematics/statistics in the Northeast area. I’m looking at top LACs (Williams, Amherst, Bowdoin, Colby, etc.) but can’t find much information about their mathematics programs. Are some of them particularly strong? Will it be more difficult to find future employment (i.e. a company looking for a statistics person won’t come looking at an LAC)? I’d love to hear people’s thoughts & experience.
I don’t know specifics about the math programs, but I can tell you my former Fortune 100 company (financial services) actively recruits all majors from Bowdoin every year. Hamilton is another big one. Probably most surprisingly, at least 25% of our actuaries came from Lebanon Valley College in PA. I’ve always been a believer what you do at school is always more important than the name of the school!
You can probably get a good undergraduate education in math/statistics at many northeastern LACs, but my top pick would be Williams. They probably have more students majoring in math or statistics (note that Williams offers these as separate majors), more math/stats faculty, and a greater variety of math/stats courses than any of the others (but check the college catalogs to verify). There currently appear to be around ~100 math or stats majors per year, which is like 15 to 20% of the class. Williams would also be a good place to double-major in math or stats and another discipline (such as English); over 40% of each class graduates with a double major.
https://math.williams.edu/majors/current-majors/
Outside of the Northeast, Harvey Mudd and St. Olaf have reputations as “math LACs”.
You can look in the faculty rosters and course listings (including schedules to check offering frequency) to find out how many and which junior/senior level math courses are likely to be available. A few of the strongest LAC math departments also offer what are ordinarily graduate level math courses, recognizing that some math majors come in already highly advanced in math. But some other LAC math departments offer only a limited selection of upper level courses in limited subareas.
Sometimes, statistics or CS may be under the math department; sometimes they may have their own departments. Take care to note this when comparing the number of course offerings between schools.
Amherst offers them as separate majors too. As smaller departments compared to, say, Econ, kids may find they gets a lot of individual attention. So more students in the major isn’t necessarily better.
Check web sites which describe the major requirements and typical paths through. Look at available courses for any given semester. In some cases there is a consortium that offers additional courses a student may want to take.
Some web sites will present graduate outcomes which may be based on recruiters coming to campus but may also be about summer/term research opportunities or grad school admissions.
You might take a look at the American Mathematical Society’s list of Haimo Awards, which “honor college or university teachers who have been widely recognized as extraordinarily successful and whose teaching effectiveness has been shown to have had influence beyond their own institutions.”
http://www.maa.org/programs/maa-awards/teaching-awards/haimo-award-distinguished-teaching
Among northeastern LACs, Bryn Mawr, Mt Holyoke, and Franklin & Marshall have all earned a Haimo Award. Outside the northeast, the Claremont Colleges have done notably well, with two at Harvey Mudd, two at Pomona, and one at Pitzer.
Williams leads all colleges and universities with six.
Haverford, Hamilton and Bowdoin appear in a Princeton Review sampling, “Great Colleges for Mathematics Majors,” and, in cases, graduate math majors at ~10 times the national average.
@Karamellikespi According to the National Science Foundation, these colleges produced the highest percentage of math and science Ph.Ds should you decide to pursue an advanced degree.
CalTech
Reed
Pomona
Swarthmore
Williams
Carleton
Whitman
St Olaf
Minnesota-Morris
Princeton
Amherst
MIT
Grinnell
Knox
Bryn Mawr
Lawrence
Kalamazoo
Additional colleges to consider.
http://www.■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■/lists/list/colleges-with-excellent-mathematics-programs/195/
In math competitions, Hamilton often over-performs against larger colleges:
https://www.hamilton.edu/news/story/mathletics-team-freezes-out-competition-in-snow-bowl
Hamilton needs to step up their game.
The math team was ranked far higher 5 years ago…#42 in 2012 v. #88 in 2017 #-o
Re: #7
“Math and science” may not necessarily mean that math is the school’s strong subject. For example, Kalamazoo has fairly limited upper level math offerings, according to https://reason.kzoo.edu/math/cousedesc/ (note that some of the courses would be under separate CS or statistics departments at other schools).
I’ve taken a lot of math classes at Reed, and I found them outstanding (aside from linear algebra, which was a complete shitshow). The multivariable calculus class at Reed is incredible: instructors use concepts like the pullback and differential forms to teach integral calculus, and use lots of topics from topology and real analysis to teach the material. For a 200-level class, this course was too much work, though. In any case, for the theoretically inclined, Reed’s program is very good. This is the case for statistics and computer science as well, which would serve theory-obsessed people very well. Most of our math majors have done well for themselves, with the majority entering the technology industry. In particular I am impressed by Reed students who make careers for themselves in the world of algorithms.
Anyway, I’d recommend Williams. Probably the best program in mathematics among LACs, with an exceptional network for jobs. Good luck!
Just for giggles (spotted on the Wesleyan alumni FB page):
http://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/as-it-happens-monday-edition-1.4167415/the-story-behind-that-connecticut-deli-math-sign-1.4169424
I am barely able to add 2 and 2, but I can tell you that your future job prospects will not be harmed by attending an LAC. In fact, would say the opposite. Please find some match and safety schools though. Bowdoin, Amherst and Williams are extremely difficult to get into. There are some nice suggestions above by @CrewDad for match schools, such as St. Olaf, Whitman, Knox, and Kalamazoo, which have good reputations. @Corbett has good suggestions too, but I wouldn’t say any of those will be a safety school.