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Math Major and Minor Preliminary Considerations
The functions of the Mathematics Department within the total framework of the University are varied. Besides the training of undergraduate and graduate majors in the field of Mathematics, the Department offers courses designed to meet the needs of students in business; engineering; physical, social, and biological sciences; and elementary and secondary education.
The student considering mathematics as a career should realize that emphasis in mathematics courses will change as he/she progresses through college and graduate school. The early emphasis on solving problems is later subordinated to the more important tasks of formulating problems in mathematical language and of dealing effectively with mathematical structures and abstract ideas.
It should be stressed that an effective mathematician in any type of employment should be a well-educated person. He/she should have not only the technical background of calculus and differential equations taken by most scientists and engineers, and the more advanced mathematical training required for a major in mathematics, but should also have taken a selection of courses from other disciplines. A student who plans to continue beyond the bachelor's degree in mathematics should also acquire a reading knowledge of at least one and preferably two of the foreign languages in which much of the current literature in mathematics is written, namely, German, Russian, and French. All students should, of course, acquire fluency in the written and oral expression of ideas in English.
The main fields of opportunity in mathematics today are teaching, mathematical statistics, mathematics in industry, mathematics in government and actuarial mathematics. The Mathematics Department provides a test center for Actuarial Examinations and offers several courses which enable the student to prepare for them.
Students may pursue the B.S. degree with a major in mathematics through the College of Arts and Sciences. Teacher certification is possible provided appropriate requirements are met.
Elective courses to be taken toward the bachelor's degree are decided in consultation with an adviser from the Mathematics Department, and vary according to the needs of the student, consistent with the particular objective of the general education and mathematical education of the student.
Placement in Mathematics
Appropriate initial enrollment in mathematics courses at UND is determined by a combination of entrance and placement tests or the acceptance of credits for transfer, Advanced Placement (AP) and College Level Examination Program (CLEP). Students enrolling without such previous credit are directed to entry level mathematics courses, courses numbered 102 through 165 and 277 depending on their scores on the ACT Mathematics test and/or a combination of scores on tests from the Placement Testing Program (PTP) sponsored by the Mathematical Association of America.
Anyone without the required prerequisites enrolling in a mathematics course may be dropped from the class by the instructor.