Opportunities
for Mathematics Majors
The college graduate with a bachelor's degree in mathematics or actuarial
science can qualify for a broad range of highly paid positions in
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business - banks, insurance companies, and consulting firms
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industry - companies in the computer and communications industries
employ many mathematicians, oil companies, insurance companies
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government - Almost every bureau and branch of the federal government
employs mathematicians in some capacity. Mathematicians, statisticians,
operations researchers, and actuaries work in the Department of Health
and Human Services, the General Accounting Office, the Office of Management
and Budget, and the National Institute of Standards. The Department of
Energy, the Department of Defense, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration,
and the National Security Agency also employ many mathematicians.
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teaching and research - University and college teaching and research
have always attracted many mathematicians. In most four-year colleges and
universities, the Ph.D. is necessary for full faculty status. Many mathematicians
with a bachelor's or master's degree teach at the K-12 level. Major Research
Laboratories: IBM, ATT, Bell, and Research Institutes support purely research
scientific positions.
Many other job titles apply to mathematicians who have specialized in an
applied branch of mathematics.
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Actuaries assemble and analyze statistics to calculate probabilities, and
thereby set rates, in the insurance industry.
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Operations Research Analysts apply scientific methods and mathematical
principles to organizational problems.
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Statisticians design, carry out, and interpret the numerical results of
surveys and experiments.
All of these careers begin with an education in mathematics, and a curiosity
about the use of mathematics to solve problems.