Math Degree

Program Offerings

• Bachelor of science degree in Mathematics
• Minors: Mathematics and Computational Statistics

What is Math?

Mathematics is a language and methodology for classifying, studying, and predicting patterns: patterns of quantity, of structure, of change, of logic. Applied mathematics is the use of mathematical language and methods to understand real-word phenomena and to solve real-world problems, while computational mathematics involves numerical and statistical methods better suited for computers.

What does a mathematician do?

A mathematician is a problem solver. An applied mathematician uses mathematical theory and technique to critically analyze and solve problems in business, government, engineering, and the social sciences.

Some duties that a mathematician might do in their career include:
• Analyze ways to schedule airline routes between cities
• Analyze the effects and safety of a new medication
• Analyze the aerodynamic characteristics of an experimental automobile
• Work in computer programming or software engineering
• Test weapons and defense systems
• Market research and big data
• Manage hedge funds or analyze financial markets

Mathematics is the most popular double major at Mines.

First-Year Courses

Computer science I & II
Calculus I & II
Composition

Course Curriculum

Link to Catalog

Internships and Co-ops

At South Dakota Mines, 79% of students land internships and co-ops in their majors, earning an average salary of $19.70/hour. Some of the places our math majors have interned include:

• National Renewable Energy Laboratory at the National Wind Technology Center
• Black Hills Energy
• Dartmouth College

Career Outlook

Math grads in the 2018-2019 academic year earned average starting salaries of $56,000. The job placement rate for applied and computational mathematics graduates was 90%.

Math Research

As a math major at South Dakota Mines, you won’t have to wait to get involved in research. Students have many opportunities to be involved in mathematical research, in collaborations with department faculty and in interdisciplinary teams with faculty and students from other departments.

The primary research focus areas of our faculty are:
• numerical linear algebra and multilinear algebra
• parameter estimation, decision theory, and non-parametric statistics
• computationally intensive statistical methods
• time series forecasting, massive data streams
• combinatorial matrix theory and graph theory
• mathematical modeling, mathematical biology and ecology
• finite geometry and non-associative algebras
• complex analysis and formal power series theory
• celestial mechanics and astronomy
• mathematical pedagogy and history