Reed College - Mathematics Major

How is Reed College in terms of Mathematics department and oppertunity.
Also which is better: ‘Mathematic-Physics’ or ‘Mathematics-Economics’?

You have to specify ‘better’ for what purpose? Some tudents will have a preference from interest or career possibilities.

Career Possibility.

Career possibility? Are you an international student?

Reed’s mathematics department is very proof-based, starting at calculus. Unlike in most colleges, the multivariable calculus course is a yearlong course: this is because you prove every thing. Similarly, you can’t take linear algebra without finishing that sequence; this is not the case in other schools. A lot of students come into Reed thinking they will do math, but decide against it because it’s too proof-based and they are more interested in stuff like physics and statistics and programming.

I would imagine that if you are an international student, a mathematics-economics major would be more employable right after graduating than mathematics-physics, but if you wish to work in America after graduating, then you would quickly realize that that kind of thinking is not necessarily helpful. The interdisciplinary math-physics degree is difficult to complete, and even math professors recommend that you simply major in physics and take more math classes that interest you because there are some parts of the physics major that are required for serious consideration for grad school, which isn’t included in the math-physics major.

It depends on what you want to do. Math-physics sounds better for engineering or programming related careers. Math-economics sounds more of a finance/business type of career.

How does Reed react to students who have taken college math courses (for example, undergraduate abstract algebra or real analysis at a university) while in high school? Do they always start at Calculus I?

http://www.reed.edu/academic_support/pdfs/placmentexams.pdf indicates that you should ask the math faculty before registration about math placement.

Well, it depends. It is kind of difficult to skip MV Calc or linear algebra if you just did a semester-long course elsewhere, which is what most people with advanced placement find difficult. Like, you can always go to the faculty, and they will ask you a bunch of questions about what you know, and might make you solve a question or two. This would allow you to directly enroll in 300-level pure math classes.

Like, if you have already studied abstract algebra at a university, is it a good idea to enroll at Reed, where graduate classes are not really available, except through independent study with professors?