Advanced Mathematics @ USYD (5 Viewers)

[BigDk]

can you tell me what your opinion about this please?

i know if the students completed maths ext2 at high school,
you are allowed to do advanced units. eg) differential calculus advanced

if you studied advanced unit, would you recommend students
who completed maths ext2 to do it?

naaah u cant do advance math if u did ext 2 maths.

only if you did gnereal maths can u do advance maths.

it is actually advised that you didnt do any maths at all in high school, because high school maths teaches you lots of bad habbits.

 

[lou071]

if you do advanced unit but you don't get accepted to
special program (by invitation) they offer, then do you take normal
level unit?

 

[ssglain]

I did all advanced/SSP level maths in first year and got HD in all of them. I've helped several friends who did normal level maths and from my experience, the normal and advanced subjects are almost identical in content, with the odd extra theorems or two that are only mentioned in advanced. However, there is a very obvious contrast in the level of mathematical rigour that is expected from both the students and the lecturers, even though the content is the same. For example, for the same theorem that is taught in both normal and advanced subjects, the advanced students are also taught the proof and are expected to be able to replicate or extend the methodologies of that proof in exams.

In general, in advanced level maths there's more focus on where ideas came from and why they are true than simply how to use them. That's definitely reflected in exam questions, where both normal and advanced students will be asked to apply some theorems or methods to do calculations, but advanced students will also be asked to do more proving and showing.

can you tell me what your opinion is about this please?

i know if the students completed maths ext2 at high school,
you are allowed to do advanced units. eg) differential calculus advanced

if you studied advanced unit, would you recommend students
who completed maths ext2 to do it?

MX2 is a prerequisite for advanced level maths subjects in first year, but I don't think that having simply done MX2 is enough. What's more important is how well did you complete MX2 because it reflects, to an extent, your commitment and interest in learning maths.

So if you did well in MX2, enjoyed overcoming every little challenge along the way and are interested in exploring further in the domain of maths, then I would recommend you to take advanced level maths subjects at uni or even major in advanced maths through B Sc (Adv) or B Sc (Adv Maths).

 

[Kirjava]

What was your experience of the SSP in maths by the way?

 

[ssglain]

if you do advanced unit but you don't get accepted to
special program (by invitation) they offer, then do you take normal
level unit?

Only a small fraction of the 70-80 or so students doing advanced level maths do SSP. There were about 15 of us in semester 1 SSP then in semester 2 some people decided not to do it any more and others who did well in semester 1 advanced level maths were invited so the number was about the same. This by no means suggests that because the other 55-65 students who didn't apply or weren't accepted shouldn't be doing advanced level maths subjects.

I think you may be a little confused about what maths SSP is. SSP students attend the exact same lectures/tutorials and do the exact same assignments/quizzes/exams as the students in the core advanced calculus subject of that semester (differential calculus (adv) in semester 1 and integral calculus & modelling (adv) in semester 2). On top of that, we attend an extra 1hr seminar per week which discusses an interesting topic that typically has absolutely nothing to do with the core calculus subjects. SSP is intended to give students who are genuinely interested in maths some fun activities to do and a tiny taste of the subjects offered in second/third year. There are 3 topics per semester and each topic has an assignment. If you do well in the assignments then the marks are used to top up your marks in the core calculus subject.

What was your experience of the SSP in maths by the way?

In 2008 the topics were:
semester 1 - regular polyhedra/cardiac arrhythmia/maps of the world
semester 2 - Bernoulli numbers/phylogenetics/cellular automata

I was absolutely fascinated by these topics and the presenters, and I had so much fun in seminars and doing the assignments with friends. I'd recommend SSP to anyone who is curious about the elegance and diversity of maths.

 

[Kirjava]

Sounds great. Is entrance really all that selective though? I'll be accepting my offer for a place in the Bachelor of Science (advanced mathematics) program tomorrow, and have received indication that I'm likely to be accepted into the faculty of science's TSP. Although the School of Mathematics and Statistics' website seems to indicate that this might be enough, my extension 2 result wasn't sky high (93). Given that I possess all the necessary enthusiasm and drive, have you any idea what my chances might be like?

 

[Deltan]

What is the UAI cut-off for adv maths?

i heard @ UNSW, its close to 99 =o
btw lou071, what uai did you end up getting?

 

[Kirjava]

Was 99.10 this year, a typical rise over last year's 98.85 or something.

 

[ssglain]

B Sc (Adv Maths) cutoffs are 99.10 at USYD and 95.00 at UNSW.

Sounds great. Is entrance really all that selective though? I'll be accepting my offer for a place in the Bachelor of Science (advanced mathematics) program tomorrow, and have received indication that I'm likely to be accepted into the faculty of science's TSP. Although the School of Mathematics and Statistics' website seems to indicate that this might be enough, my extension 2 result wasn't sky high (93). Given that I possess all the necessary enthusiasm and drive, have you any idea what my chances might be like?

TSP requirement is (99+ UAI) and (90+ in a HSC scienc or 95+ in MX2). Special entry permission is also givenby the dean to students who have exceptional ability in an area of science shown through things like Olympiad participation.

So if you have been offered B Sc (Adv Maths) then I assume you satisfy the UAI requirement for TSP. Did you do a HSC science subject and get band 6? If so then you're definitely in, otherwise I think the faculty may give you special permission because your MX2 is only just slightly off.

As for SSP, from memory all B Sc (Adv Maths) students are invited by default. The requirements are 98.5+ UAI and E4 in MX2 so you're in either way.

By the way, congratulations for the offer! Remember to sign up for the science transition workshop on enrolment day!

 

[Templar]

Only a small fraction of the 70-80 or so students doing advanced level maths do SSP.

Just to clear things up, there's >250 students in each first year adv maths course.

Sounds great. Is entrance really all that selective though?

If you are accepted into the BSc (Adv Maths) your chance of being in SSP is pretty high.

Do go to the transition workshop, you can ask all sorts of questions you have, and there'll be people there who were in the same position and can advise you.

 

[Kirjava]

Did you do a HSC science subject and get band 6? If so then you're definitely in, otherwise I think the faculty may give you special permission because your MX2 is only just slightly off.

Band 6 for physics.

As for SSP, from memory all B Sc (Adv Maths) students are invited by default. The requirements are 98.5+ UAI and E4 in MX2 so you're in either way.

By the way, congratulations for the offer! Remember to sign up for the science transition workshop on enrolment day!

What a relief! I just wasn't quite sure. I suppose had better look up the science transition workshop-- enrolment is tommorow. Thanks for the replies .

 

[lou071]

Band 6 for physics.



What a relief! I just wasn't quite sure. I suppose had better look up the science transition workshop-- enrolment is tommorow. Thanks for the replies .

yeah. enrolment process begins tomorrow. 27th of Jan
almost forgot about it

 

[ssglain]

Just to clear things up, there's >250 students in each first year adv maths course.

Come to think of it, you're right. In the final exam there must have been roughly 200 people. I was doing a guestimate on the number of people who turn up to lectures.

Speaking of which, semester 2's stats (adv) must have been demoralising for Weber. We started off with a full lecture theatre and after a few weeks less than 50 people would turn up. I really liked his lectures though.

 

[BigDk]

yeah. enrolment process begins tomorrow. 27th of Jan
almost forgot about it

yeah right

 

[Trebla]

Come to think of it, you're right. In the final exam there must have been roughly 200 people. I was doing a guestimate on the number of people who turn up to lectures.

Speaking of which, semester 2's stats (adv) must have been demoralising for Weber. We started off with a full lecture theatre and after a few weeks less than 50 people would turn up. I really liked his lectures though.

The original lecturer passed away didn't he? Weber had to take over since then. What was that like???!!!

 

[ssglain]

The original lecturer passed away didn't he? Weber had to take over since then. What was that like???!!!

Yeah. He was perfectly fine until he didn't show up for a lecture. We sat there for about half an hour and then decided to leave. The next day we had Weber and he told us that Raimondo was hospitalised over the weekend for meningitis and passed away. With all due respect, it really freaked everybody out.

I don't think it was Weber's fault that people started not showing up. I guess a lot of people just find stats boring, especially the early stuff on data analysis (stem-leaf diagrams, boxplots, etc.). But I really like stats.

 

[adnan91]

Wait so when u enrol the person ur speaking to outlines which units u can choose. Im doing eng/commerce and i cant find the course outline and structure anywhere in the hand book. So does that person outline the structure of the course, electives, units and stuff or do i have to keep searching?

 

[Deltan]

What are the job oppurtunities with this degree and what's the pay like?
Also which one is more hardcore, actuaries or adv math and has better job propsect?

 

[lou071]

What are the job oppurtunities with this degree and what's the pay like?
Also which one is more hardcore, actuaries or adv math and has better job propsect?

the job opportunities are high with mathematics degree although i can't give you the examples. look through UAC guide book. i think they list jobs available with completion of mathematics degree.

 

[Templar]

Speaking of which, semester 2's stats (adv) must have been demoralising for Weber. We started off with a full lecture theatre and after a few weeks less than 50 people would turn up. I really liked his lectures though.

Not really, academics are generally detached to the people who attend lectures. Plus half of his 3rd year stats class didn't turn up one semester, and he even gave one guy 5 sets of material because he knew he was there to take notes for the others in a rotation system.