Math Related Professions

 Actuary:  An actuary analyzes data to determine future risk, and is employed by either insurance companies or consulting firms.  For insurance companies, actuaries set rates based on their predictions.  For consulting companies, they do such things as make pricing decisions and develop investment strategies. 

Actuaries make very good money and generally have good working conditions.  In nearly every job ranking, this profession is very close to the top (in some it is #1).  The flip side is that you have to take actuarial exams that are challenging, so you need to have strong test-taking ability and math aptitude for this career.  Check out the websites http://www.BeAnActuary.org and http://www.soa.org for more information.  If this sounds good to you, major in Statistics or, better yet,  get a B.S. degree in math with a concentration in Actuarial Science.

 Business Career with Math:  Maybe you don’t want the pressure of taking exams that the actuarial career path requires, but you want to use math in the workplace.  Math majors often find employment in accounting and finance, sales and marketing, or management.  If you think this sounds good to you, think about having a Statistics major and a business minor.  

Career with Math and Computers: If you enjoy both math and computers, there are many opportunities available to you.  Any combination of mathematics and computer science major/minor will make you very employable, either as a programmer, a systems analyst, or perhaps a cryptologist (maker and breaker of secret codes).  In fact, the National Security Agency (NSA) is the largest employer of mathematicians in the world, and many of their employees work with math and computers.  See http://www.nsa.gov

Teaching (Pre-College):   If you want to teach math in middle school or high school, then you must get a double major in education and mathematics (in PA).  If this is the case, make sure to declare both majors and have an advisor for both.  

Teaching College:  If you want to teach at the college level, then you will need to pursue a masters and PhD after graduating.  If you take abstract algebra and advanced calculus and really enjoyed them, then this is worth considering.  It is not an easy path, but it is an excellent career.  With a PhD in math, you could do research work, teach, or both.  The NSA employs many PhDs in math. 

Applied Mathematics and Engineering:  If you like math and either physics or chemistry, then you might think about getting a masters degree in applied math or engineering.  For these careers, consider a minor in physics along with your major (or vice versa).  There are plenty of opportunities in this field as well as high paying jobs. 

Statistician: A statistician collects, analyzes, and presents summaries of data.  They work with the design of both experiments and sample surveys, and may make contributions in biology, medicine, environmental science, engineering, economics, political science, sports, meteorology, etc.   There are many career opportunities for people with strong backgrounds in statistics.  To learn more, click on statistician.