Majors and Minors in Math

The Bachelor of Arts program in Mathematics is designed to provide a solid foundation in the main areas of mathematics and mathematical applications, in preparation for a wide variety of careers or post-undergraduate programs. Students prepare for work in quantitative fields including actuarial science, finance, and data science, or further study in fields such as statistics or computational biology. Students who complete the BA in mathematics also pursue careers in education, law and medicine.

In recent years, about 65% of math majors pursued the BA track.

The BA Mathematics major requires completion of at least 33 credits, depending upon the student's preparation in Calculus prior to entering Boston College.

Planning

Most B.A. candidates will begin their program with a Calculus course. The earlier you complete the required Calculus courses, the easier your scheduling becomes.

Programs for Those Beginning With Calculus for Math and Science

These are the usual scheduling grids we see among our majors who started right away in first semester of freshman year in a Calculus course designed for Math and Science majors:

About 20% begin by taking MATH 1102 Calculus I in their first semester. Many of these students have had little or no Calculus before entering BC, while some have taken a semester or more of Calculus but do not feel prepared to enter Calculus II right away. Several of these students may actually begin a major other than mathematics (the usual suspects: Chemistry, Computer Science B.S. Program, Geology-Geophysics, Geophysics, and Physics).

For these students, the major requirements can be satisfied as follows:

About 45% begin with MATH 1105 Calculus II-AP in their first semester. If you are prepared to enter MATH 1105 right away in the Fall of your freshman year (e.g., you got at least a four on the Calculus AB Advanced Placement Exam), then your major requirements can easily be satisfied as follows:

Almost 35% begin with MT 2202 in their first semester. If you are prepared to enter MT 2202 in the Fall of your freshman year (e.g., you got a five on the Calculus BC Advanced Placement Exam), then your requirements are reduced to:

All of the proposed schedules above are conservative. None requires more than two courses in any semester, none proposes any acceleration during the first two years, and none proposes completing more than a minimal program. But some students will be eager to learn more mathematics sooner; some may plan on taking an extra mathematics elective or two while at BC; and some may have specific preferences for courses which match career goals. Please see the closing sections of this page for comments about these situations.

What If You Don't Start with a Math and Science Calculus Course?

About 15% of our eventual B.A. candidates do not take one of the required Calculus courses for Math and Science Majors in their first semester. Many of these students probably elected majors which required them to take other Calculus courses. One example would include:

A student who completes one of MATH 1100 or MATH 1101 in the first semester (example: a Biology major) can transition to and complete a mathematics major by moving into MATH 1103 in the second semester:

Almost every student who joins the B.A. program after the first semester will require an individualized recommendation for arranging his or her program of study, and he or she should consult the Mathematics Assistant Chair for Undergraduates as soon as possible.

Variations in Scheduling

There are reasons why the schedules proposed above will have to be modified for some students. The typical variations we see, together with proposed modifications, include these:

Junior Year Abroad (worst case, assuming you don't take any mathematics courses while abroad—although most of our majors who go abroad take at least one mathematics course while they're away from BC):

LSOE Student (LSOE students are required to student-teach for one semester, usually in the Fall semester of senior year):

Late Change to Mathematics (worst case: a student who took MATH 1100-MATH 1101 in first year):

Nevertheless, no matter what variations might affect your situation, we strongly urge that you adhere to these basic recommendations in working out a scheduling of courses for the major:

1. Complete MATH 2202/3 as early as you can;
2. Complete at least one of MATH 2210/1 or MATH 2216 no later than first semester of sophomore year, and complete both no later than the end of sophomore year (MATH 2210/1 is usually completed before MATH 2216, but there may be situations in which this need not be the case);
3. Complete at least one of MATH 3310 or MATH 3320 in first semester of junior year; and complete both no later than the end of junior year (these courses are independent and can be taken in either order);
4. Complete at least one elective course no later than first semester of junior year; and at least two elective courses no later than the end of junior year.

For More Information and Advice

Feel free to contact any of the following: