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First Year Orientation Advising

It is helpful for students who intend to take mathematics courses in the fall to speak with a mathematics advisor regarding course placement. This is particularly true if a student intends to ignore the advice of the placement exam or would like to explore honors math options.

Transfer credit:  Before meeting with an advisor, students with transfer credit should first check the Math Transfer Credit Database to see if their prior courses will transfer. If not, they should submit any evaluation requests through that site prior to their math advising appointment. 

Please schedule any math advising appointment after your meeting with your general advisor. They may be able to answer any math-related questions you have, making a math appointment unnecessary. Many of your questions may also be answered by the questions and videos that you will find towards the bottom of this page. Please take a look at all of the materials prior to attending your appointment. 

For basic questions regarding Placement into Math 105, 115, 116, 156, & 215, click on the appropriate link below based on your home program to make an appointment with an advisor: 

 

For questions regarding Honors math courses, all other math courses, or the math major/minor, please attend Zoom drop-in advising with a Mathematics Advisor.

Don't see your college or program in the above links?  First-year students in other colleges and programs may attend Zoom drop-in advising

Should I take a math course.......?

College works differently from high school, where you likely took a math course every semester. The advice outlined below will often recommend you talk to your general advisor or a Math advisor, because figuring out what’s best for you will often depend heavily on your individual situation. To make an appointment with a Math advisor use the links provided above.

Since there are so many math offerings, answering the following questions can help you navigate our courses and identify the right math course for YOU.

Students taking a math class who do not start in Math 105, and do not have college credit beyond calculus typically start with the Mainstream Calculus (115-116-215-216) sequence. These courses focus on the ways that mathematics can be used to model real-life scenarios and understand the world around us.

What course you start in will depend on your previous experience with calculus, such as AP Calculus.

The Math Department offers a number of other sequences available to students. If you’re interested in taking courses listed below other than Math 156, you should meet with a Math Honors Advisor (see links at the top of this page). The goal of this meeting is to make sure you understand the content and expectations of the course, and to discuss how this course might fit into your overall academic plan. Students are required to waitlist for these courses, and will be given permission to enroll upon confirmation that they have met with an advisor. 

This sequence includes more rigorous mathematical proofs. You’ll learn how mathematicians think about and justify mathematical concepts.

This course is for students who scored a 4 or 5 on the Calculus AB or BC exam and are specifically interested in applications to Engineering and physical sciences and would like to see some of the proofs of the material being covered.

If you want to try out a rigorous, exciting mathematics course that isn’t calculus, you should consider Math 275, Intro to Cryptology.

These courses cover multivariable calculus (285) and differential equations (286) from a more rigorous perspective than the mainstream sequence.

This sequence is for students who like the idea of an immersive mathematical experience. Students considering this course should be aware that it has a very heavy workload: you should expect 15-20 hours of homework each week.