Department of Mathematics Goals

Mathematical Practice

P1. (Affection)

Students should appreciate the beauty, fun, and power of mathematics, and be able to articulate what mathematics is about and what mathematicians do.

P2. (Application)

Students should be able to link applications and theory, and be able to apply mathematics in a variety of settings.

P3. (Inquiry)

Students should develop mathematical independence and experience open-ended inquiry, so they have the competence and confidence to build on their knowledge base.

P4. (Communication)

Students should develop effective thinking and communication skills.

P5. (Technology)

Students should be able to use technological tools appropriately and effectively.

P6. (Society)

Students should strive to be good citizens who understand the impact of their work on society.

P7. (Teamwork)

Students should be able to function well as part of a team and have honed their leadership skills.

P8. (Diversity)

Students should be able to work and communicate with diverse groups of people of varying abilities who come from a variety of cultures.

Mathematical Content

C1. (Breadth)

Students should be competent in a broad range of mathematical skills and topics.

C2. (Perspective)

Students should demonstrate that they can see key mathematical ideas and concepts from a variety of perspectives, including the view from other disciplines, historical perspectives, and the contributions of diverse cultures.

C3. (Duality)

Math majors should demonstrate that they can see key ideas from complementary points of view: continuous and discrete; algebraic and geometric; deterministic and stochastic; exact and approximate.

C4. (Proofs)

Math majors should learn to reason mathematically and read, understand, analyze, and produce proofs.

C5. (Tools)

Math majors should learn concepts and methods from data analysis, computing, and mathematical modeling.

C6. (Depth)

Math majors should see at least one mathematical area in depth in a sequence of upper-level courses.

C7. (Projects)

Math majors should work, independently or in a small group, on a substantial mathematical project that involves techniques and concepts beyond the typical content of a single course.

C8. (Careers)

Math majors should be aware of careers in mathematics.

Approved February, 2017.