Careers for Math Majors

A good mathematics education can lead to a good and rewarding job.

Statistics and Data Analysis skills are particularly well-suited to jobs in industry.

Programming Experience is also important.  In particular, know standard packages such as the Microsoft Office Package, MatLab, and Maple (Mathematica is not as useful here and is more used in academic circles).

Look at different career profiles as compiled by the MAA, or explore some possible career paths.

Job ads may not specifically mention math.  Look for terms like "analyst", "data analysis", and "operations research".

LearnHowToBecome a professional in math, computer science, data science, or numbers in general.

Look at this Tech Guide.

Pursue a career in STEM or computer science.

Here are some sites with job ads:

Jobs2Careers

SIAM

Indeed

Dice is a job site for technology careers, as well as CSOnline.

You could find a job in the US Government.

You can do a search at CarerBuilder.  E.g., search under keyword: math at location: PA.

The NSA has a nice offering of careers.

And naturally, you'll be looking for a Career in Numbers of some sort, as you can peruse here.

Or, you can consider jobs in cyber security here1 or here2 or here3 with a cyber security degree.

Are you interested in data science?  What is data science?  You can Learn How to Become a Data Scientist.

Are you interested in math in sports?

Of course, many of you may want to Be An Actuary, and prepare for Actuarial Exams.

In particular, it is recommended that you take (and pass) the first exam (called Exam P-Probability) before you graduate. The subject of the first exam is calculus-based probability.  The courses at Commonwealth University that cover the material on this exam are Stat 241 (Probability and Statistics) and Math 402 (Probability Theory for Actuarial Science). 

To attain the FSA (Fellow of the Society of Actuaries) designation, you will eventually need to pass four other exams: Exam FM-Financial Mathematics, Exam M-(MFE)-Actuarial Models-Financial Economics Segment, Exam M-(MLC)-Actuarial Models-Life Contingencies Segment, and Exam C-Construction and Evaluation of Actuarial Models. These are typically undertaken after starting a job. However, having Exam FM completed before seeking a job could really give you a leg up.

An Actuarial Internship would also be a wise endevour in the summer between Junior and Senior year such as the ones at Aon, MetLife, or Allstate.  You might also consider Prudential.

Are you thinking about graduate school? There are also online programs.

Or a teaching job? Check out Math Teaching as well.

Here is a Cool Math site on careers, that contains some duplication of the links above.

Dr. Polhill also has a site on math related professions.