Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 23:24     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Anonymous wrote:NYU
Johns Hopkins
Rice
Harvey Mudd
UMich - I heard their Math Honors track is good?
Williams
Swarthmore
CMU


These will all be good. But if a truly gifted student - Rice, Harvey Mudd, and Williams. A math undergrad will get a lot more opportunities there than at Michigan, CMU, and JHU.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 23:15     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Anonymous wrote:Isn't Brown supposed to be great for applied math nowadays?
Yes it is. And the flexibility means students can do nothing but math if they wish.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 23:14     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:NYU
Johns Hopkins
Rice
Harvey Mudd
UMich - I heard their Math Honors track is good?
Williams
Swarthmore
CMU


My kid is into math - likes both pure and applied. Qualified for USAJMO & USAMO and has a few other activities/achievements in math. Objectively would be among the top 50-100 students for their grade in math.
No, the MOPers would be top 50-100. Each year around 500 qualify for USA(J)MO, and that's not counting the similarly talented students who focused on learning advanced undergrad math rather than math competitions.

There are not many in this small group at places like UMD and UVA - certainly not enough to fill a class so the professor can go at a pace and depth that challenges them. At a place like that, their best option is begging to skip into real analysis/algebra for a challenge.


Given that UMD finished top 10 in Putnam for the last 3 years, I don't think this is correct.
The Putnam team is the top 5 students. That's not nearly enough for a full class.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 19:21     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Isn't Brown supposed to be great for applied math nowadays?
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 18:55     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:NYU
Johns Hopkins
Rice
Harvey Mudd
UMich - I heard their Math Honors track is good?
Williams
Swarthmore
CMU


My kid is into math - likes both pure and applied. Qualified for USAJMO & USAMO and has a few other activities/achievements in math. Objectively would be among the top 50-100 students for their grade in math.
No, the MOPers would be top 50-100. Each year around 500 qualify for USA(J)MO, and that's not counting the similarly talented students who focused on learning advanced undergrad math rather than math competitions.

There are not many in this small group at places like UMD and UVA - certainly not enough to fill a class so the professor can go at a pace and depth that challenges them. At a place like that, their best option is begging to skip into real analysis/algebra for a challenge.


Given that UMD finished top 10 in Putnam for the last 3 years, I don't think this is correct.

It’s a good college and is massive. Sure it’s top 10 team, but that doesn’t mean much when so much of the top 100 placements are MIT.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 18:55     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Although I'm not a particular fan of this site, it may offer you some ideas:

https://www.collegetransitions.com/blog/best-colleges-for-mathematics/

As a suggestion on LACs, if you have an interest in applied math, consider those with an available major in data science.

Applied math isn't data science. Statistics isn't data science either. They're different fields.

This is what the University of Washington, for example, says about its data science track:

"The Data Science option in Applied Mathematics provides students with training in data science methods and practices through the study of statistical modeling, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and optimization, among other aspects of applied mathematics. "

Note that the term applied mathematics appears twice.

Cool. Different fields.


I'll go ahead and tell you that they need to restructure the department because the God of Math has decided.

Welcome to the world, sometimes things are done administratively cause it makes things easier. My university had the business major under the college of arts and sciences- it just was done that way and is easier
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 18:25     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:NYU
Johns Hopkins
Rice
Harvey Mudd
UMich - I heard their Math Honors track is good?
Williams
Swarthmore
CMU


My kid is into math - likes both pure and applied. Qualified for USAJMO & USAMO and has a few other activities/achievements in math. Objectively would be among the top 50-100 students for their grade in math.
No, the MOPers would be top 50-100. Each year around 500 qualify for USA(J)MO, and that's not counting the similarly talented students who focused on learning advanced undergrad math rather than math competitions.

There are not many in this small group at places like UMD and UVA - certainly not enough to fill a class so the professor can go at a pace and depth that challenges them. At a place like that, their best option is begging to skip into real analysis/algebra for a challenge.


Given that UMD finished top 10 in Putnam for the last 3 years, I don't think this is correct.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 15:26     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Although I'm not a particular fan of this site, it may offer you some ideas:

https://www.collegetransitions.com/blog/best-colleges-for-mathematics/

As a suggestion on LACs, if you have an interest in applied math, consider those with an available major in data science.

Applied math isn't data science. Statistics isn't data science either. They're different fields.

This is what the University of Washington, for example, says about its data science track:

"The Data Science option in Applied Mathematics provides students with training in data science methods and practices through the study of statistical modeling, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and optimization, among other aspects of applied mathematics. "

Note that the term applied mathematics appears twice.
The real reason for this isn't because they consider DS to be a field of math, but because their CS major is too rigorous/prestigious to water down with such a fluffy option.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 15:00     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Are you looking for pure or applied? People here keep replying about applied only, but if you are this much, you’re probably looking for pure.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 14:59     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Although I'm not a particular fan of this site, it may offer you some ideas:

https://www.collegetransitions.com/blog/best-colleges-for-mathematics/

As a suggestion on LACs, if you have an interest in applied math, consider those with an available major in data science.

Applied math isn't data science. Statistics isn't data science either. They're different fields.

This is what the University of Washington, for example, says about its data science track:

"The Data Science option in Applied Mathematics provides students with training in data science methods and practices through the study of statistical modeling, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and optimization, among other aspects of applied mathematics. "

Note that the term applied mathematics appears twice.

Data science is applied statistics which is applied math. It’s so far removed.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 14:08     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Ga Tech should be on there.
. UGA is better. Freshmen with BC credit can take math 3500H first semester which is more rigorous than the options for a similar didn't at GTech
*similar student
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 14:08     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:NYU
Johns Hopkins
Rice
Harvey Mudd
UMich - I heard their Math Honors track is good?
Williams
Swarthmore
CMU


My kid is into math - likes both pure and applied. Qualified for USAJMO & USAMO and has a few other activities/achievements in math. Objectively would be among the top 50-100 students for their grade in math.
No, the MOPers would be top 50-100. Each year around 500 qualify for USA(J)MO, and that's not counting the similarly talented students who focused on learning advanced undergrad math rather than math competitions.

There are not many in this small group at places like UMD and UVA - certainly not enough to fill a class so the professor can go at a pace and depth that challenges them. At a place like that, their best option is begging to skip into real analysis/algebra for a challenge.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 13:15     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Anonymous wrote:Ga Tech should be on there.
. UGA is better. Freshmen with BC credit can take math 3500H first semester which is more rigorous than the options for a similar didn't at GTech
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 13:07     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
*of high school
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2025 13:07     Subject: Are these schools good for math (pure, or applied)?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Take NyU off and add some ivies and uchicago


Really? Ever hear of Courant? NYU is very good at math.
That's at the graduate level, though. I don't see any evidence of their undergraduate program being particularly rigorous.


Who said this is just about undergrad? Why do you make the rules?

And how do you determine if an undergrad program is rigorous? One of the smartest mathematicians I have ever met went to a completely random school for undergrad, mainly for financial reasons. They were highly motivated and did the work to get into an elite PhD program and went from there.

So we should just conclude that every college has a good math program since there’s always going to be an incredibly intelligent student who can make it work? What a useless comment.


I'm saying that it is very hard to differentiate between these schools at such a granular level and most people who are capable of doing so are likely doing better things with their lives than posting here. And that most people doing so might be doing it based on one or two data points, so I am pre-emptively shooting all of that down by providing a contrarian data point.

There are a handful of kids in America for whom the nuanced differences between different math departments truly matter. These kids are off the charts. You know them when you meet them (and you probably haven't met them). Skippy or Sanjay or Hong taking Calculus at TJ or Stuy as a freshman or sophomore does not qualify him in this group.
On the contrary, that elite group is the best equipped to make a random school work for them by impressing professors to get research opportunities, skipping prerequisites, taking grad courses first year even if that's against department policy, etc.

Skippy, Sanjay, and Hong need a school with a strong official math track that will challenge them without also requiring them to fight their way through red tape at the same time. Not to mention the social benefits of having a cohort of students at the same level as you whom you can bounce ideas off of and, yes, even learn from. And they stand a good chance of running out of math at a LAC, considering they could be taking analysis junior year.