Centre for Mathematical Science

Mathematics at City University

Dr Olalla Castro AlvaredoSenior Lecturer in MathematicsAdmissions Tutor for Mathematics

sa702@city.ac.uk

There is quite a lot of information in today’s talk. Anyone interested can request a copy of my slides by e-mailing me or talking to me at the of today’s event.

Introduction

Mathematics at City is taught in the Centre for Mathematical Science. We recruit approximately 140 students per year onto a variety of different courses.

Many of our students study Mathematics in combination with another subject, such as Finance, Economics, Computing or Statistics.

The main goal is of this talk is to explain the difference between these various degrees, and indicate what you should consider when choosing between them.

Why study Mathematics (UG) Mathematics-based degrees provide students with skills which are

fundamental in many fields of academic, industrial and entrepreneurial activity and highly valued by employers

All City Mathematics graduates

• Receive training in advanced mathematical techniques• Develop problem solving skills• Learn to think abstractly and logically• Are taught how to recast problems in a variety of fields in

mathematical language and to subsequently solve them using the skills and knowledge acquired in their degree

• Are given opportunities to work in a group and to develop oral presentation skills

Distinctive features of our courses

• Students are encouraged to apply for Placements and/or summer Internships. They receive extensive careers support targeted at identifying job opportunities for Mathematicians and applying for jobs.

The courses at City

• Adopt a modern approach, relevant to future careers or further study

• Have a good record in preparing students for finding employment after completing their studies

Distinctive features of our courses

All specialist modules are taught by experts in the relevant discipline.

Our courses involve modules from

• Cass Business School• School of Social Sciences (Economics Department)• School of Informatics

Many of these modules are taken with students specialisingin the particular subject in question, such as Economics, Actuarial Science, Banking, or Computer Science.

Typical offers

The precise offer will depend on the individual student, but typically we ask for an A in Maths or Further Maths A-level with 360 UCAS points overall.

It is important to note that the 360 UCAS points above do not necessarily have to come from 3 A-levels. Any combination of A-levels and AS-levels will be considered.

These offers exclude General Studies, and A/AS levels in first languages other than English are counted at half value.

These points scores are based on the standard UCAS tariffs:

A-level

A*=140 A=120 B=100 C=80 D=60 E=40

AS-level

A*=70 A=60 B=50 C=40 D=30 E=20

After your results appear

There are four possibilities:

• You make your offer for your first choice university.

• You make your offer for your second choice university.

• You are close to either your first or second choice offer. In this case you may still be accepted by one of your two choices.

This is true of (virtually) all universities, so if your grades are not as good as you hoped, you should begin by checking with your first and second choices. They may well already have accepted you; if not then...

• You are not accepted by either of your two choices. In this case you will be in clearing.

Do not worry if this happens – plenty of students end up in this position and still find a place at a good university.

However, if you are in clearing you must try to find a place as soon as you can.

Accommodation at City

This information applies to 2011-12. However, the systems

and figures should be similar in the coming year.

All the student halls are within walking distance of the University.

A place in Halls is guaranteed for 1st year students provided that they:

• make City their first choice

• apply for accommodation before May 15 (form available on-line)

• live outside the traditional boundaries of Greater London

• are over 18 at the start of the academic year

However, most students do get a place in Halls in their first year, if that is their wish. There are

• self-contained flats (sharing with 3-4 other students) • single room with en suite facilities• single room with sink (share bathroom/kitchen)

Rents were £130.13- £266.85 per week for 2011/12.Accomodation at Halls is available for 41-51 weeks/year

For information on individual halls and how to apply

http://www.city.ac.uk/study/why-study-at-city/accommodation/halls-of-residence

Finances

With the advent of top-up fees, we offer Home and EU

students more financial support. As well as the

University bursaries (£350-750, based on income), our

School and the University offer a number of

scholarships and prizes based on academic merit.

The Lord Mayor of London Scholarships• These scholarships will be launched from next academic year. Their purpose is to reward the best UK/EU students.

•Students with A*AA would receive £3,000 a year for at least three years. Students with AAA would receive £2,000 a year and students with AAB would receive £1,000 a year.

•These scholarships would be awarded to all students that meet the criteria.

•More information can be found here:http://www.city.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/scholarships

Course structure• Like most Universities today, City employs a credit-based system.

• This gives more flexibility to the study programmes

• Each course is organized in modules, each module is worth a certain number of credits

• Each course has compulsory and optional modules. In the 1st year all modules are compulsory, and in the second and third years more options become available

Module structure• All modules are either 15 or 30 credits

• 15 credit modules involve 3 hours of lectures/labs per week

• 30 credit modules are split into two 15 credit parts which may be taken in different terms, but will be examined together

• An average week will involve about 15 hours of lectures/Labs

• Every year of every BSc is worth 120 credits (7 or 8 modules per year)

Module assessment

For most modules assessment is based both on marked assignments (mostly 2) which are carried out as the module is taught (coursework) and a final exam.

Coursework contributes 20% to the final mark and exam contributes 80%.

A minimum mark of 40% for each part (CW and exam) is required to pass the module.

There are five degree courses:

• BSc/MMath Mathematical Science • BSc/MMath Math. Sci. with Statistics • BSc/MMath Math. Sci. with Computer Science • BSc/MMath Math. Sci. with Finance and Economics• BSc/MMath Mathematics and Finance

Courses

All courses lead to a BSc degree after three years, or an MMath degree after four years.

Between the second and third years there is the possibility of taking an extra year out of University (placement) in Industry.

All students have the option at the end of their second year to decide whether or not they want to do a placement and/or an MMath.

Year 1

Second year

In average, students take 60% of Mathematics

modules together and 40% of modules in their

speciality with 25% of modules being optional.

The proportions vary a little between degrees,

specially for Mathematics and Finance.

Second year

Example modules (Yr 2)

• Dynamical Systems Analysis• Applied Maths Numerical Maths• Decision Analysis Discrete Stochastic Modelling• Imperative Programming Computation and Reasoning• Software Engineering Principles of Finance• FOREX Economic Theory• Financial Economics International Economics

Third year (BSc)

All students take two core Mathematics modules (and one

core Finance module for MF), plus several specialist modules and an optional module.

All students must also write a (group) final year project.

Third year (BSc)

Example modules (Yr 3)

• Differential Equations Fluid Dynamics• Discrete Mathematics Mathematical Modelling• Quantum Mechanics Discrete Mathematics• Econometrics Operational Research• Reliability Modelling Survival Modelling• Language Processors Data Structures & Algorithms• Corporate Finance Derivatives Trading• Financial Markets International Finance

Third/fourth year (MMath)

• MMath: qualification in between a BSc and an MSc.

• Students on the MMath have a different 3rd year, and

must therefore decide at the end of the second year what

route they want to take.

• Students will take more module choices in their 3rd and 4th

year and study two extra “special topics” every year. They

will also do an additional (more advanced) project in their

4th year.

Job prospects

Our students are typically very successful in the jobs

market. As a whole, City is ranked 10th out of 121

universities* for employability. Mathematics degrees are

among the better degrees (at all universities) for

employability.

*This is according to the Sunday Times University Guide 2011

Job prospects• All Maths degrees have a good employability record (nearly 95% of

our 2007 graduates had an occupation within 6 months of graduation).

• The figures were slighly worse for students graduating in 2009 showing that nearly 75% of graduates had an occupation within 6 months of graduation.

• Our most recent figures for students graduating in 2010 show a marked improvement, with 88% of graduates having an occupation within 6 months of graduation.

• Details of precise occupations are given in the next slide.

Job prospects Some of the graduate jobs students took up in 2010 are:

Job prospects Many students went on to carry out further study at:

PGCE: School Teaching Qualification