About our department

		Mathematics at the UNIVERSITY of SCRANTON

B. S. in Mathematics The program begins with Calculus, Discrete Mathematics, and Linear Algebra. More advanced studies are in pure (e.g., Vector Calculus, Complex Variables) or applied mathematics (Chaos and Fractals, Statistics.) Click here to read more about other upper division courses that math majors can choose. Although many course titles may sound foreign to you, the courses themselves are not difficult. All of them are taught by experienced (full time) faculty consistently ranked very highly by students. We pay close attention to the quality of our teaching and pride ourselves in working individually with all math majors.		B. S. in Biomathematics The Biomathematics program is a new option for students who want to study both applied mathematics and biology. You may be familiar with the use of statistics in experimental science but Biomathematics goes beyond this. The study of epidemics (the spread of diseases) uses very sophisticated mathematical techniques. Scientists routinely use advanced mathematics to describe how the heart works, how blood flows, how nerve impulses are transmitted, how tumors grow, and how entire organisms grow. The rapid advancement of this discipline and the health industry led us to introduce an unusual major in Biomathematics. The program requires seven mathematics, six biology, four chemistry, and two physics courses plus a computer literacy course. The biology courses must fit in one of four tracks: epidemiology, molecular biology, physiology, or population biology. Biomathematics is a relatively new major, offered in the Fall of 1999 for the first time. Since then most of our biomath graduates went to medical and dental schools. Others continue their education in Ph.D. programs in pharmacology, biochemistry, and similar related fields. Some work for environmental companies. Employment Nearly all math majors complete a minor in computer science, chemistry, physics, or economics. Some double major in education. Approximately 60% of our graduates find employment in insurance agencies, research labs, schools, and financial institutions. They start as actuaries, programmers, teachers, and statisticians. Among their employers are: AT&T, Prudential Insurance, Hewitt Associates, Towers Perrin, and Federal Reserve Board of Governors. Their salaries are similar to science students (e.g., Chemistry, Computers) and business students (Accounting, Finance). The remaining 40% of math majors continue their education in graduate schools. Further information about careers in mathematics can be found at the AMS website. Math Contests Students in our department have participated in undergraduate mathematics competitions such as the Garden State Undergraduate Mathematics Competition (GSUMC) and the Putnam Exam. The top team from the University of Scranton won the GSUMC in 2004 and placed third in 2005.
Graduate Schools Our students have an excellent record of acceptances into graduate schools. We prepare our students by frequently offering advanced math classes with less than ten students. Teachers have an opportunity to raise students' math skills to new levels. Many students discover that they enjoy definitions, theorems and proofs of higher mathematics and choose to continue their studies in a graduate school. Those who express an early interest in higher math have an opportunity to enroll in the Faculty - Student Research Program or the Honors Program. After two to four semesters of joint research with faculty members, students write papers that are sent to refereed journals. Not only have all of our students' papers been accepted but they have won several regional Mathematical Association of America Awards (click here and here for details). This kind of accomplishment opens the doors to many graduate schools with full scholarships. Recent graduates have attended Lehigh University, Indiana University, Rutgers, Vanderbilt, University of Pennsylvania, and many other schools.
Facilities With a $40,000 grant from the Pennsylvania Board of Education and a $127,000 grant from the Arthur Vining- Davis Foundation the mathematics department has developed a state of the art computational laboratory and study room. Known as the Math Lab it is primarily intended for math students use. Nearly twenty computers are equipped with the latest versions of Maple, Geometer's Sketchpad, Scientific Workplace and other math software. The Math Lab is located only a few steps from faculty offices so that students may easily ask for assistance with their homework. Our faculty expertise covers all major areas of mathematics.