Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science in Mathematics

Thorough Orientation - As a freshman, you will take the introductory course Beautiful Math Structures and Thinking, constructed just for freshmen. This course is a “pre-professional” introduction to mathematics that builds community among incoming math majors and offers an exciting introduction to many modern mathematical ideas not seen in calculus class, such as propositional and predicate logic, set theory and infinite cardinals, n-dimensional space, fractals, discrete dynamical systems and chaos.

Community - Because of the rigor of the program and its small size, students frequently interact with each other and with faculty, and as a result establish strong relationships. They also plan occasional social events to help foster further interactions among students, and between students and faculty.

Excellent Preparation - You will receive excellent instruction and be prepared to succeed. Our students who took the ETS Major Field Test in Mathematics placed in the 99th percentile. This test measures content knowledge in undergraduate mathematics.

Variety and Flexibility - Mathematics is a powerful subject that prepares students for a variety of careers in multiple industries. In addition to a strong core of courses that includes calculus and differential equations, logic and methods of proof, and linear algebra, we offer a variety of upper-division math courses, including both theoretical and applied electives, such as abstract algebra, real variables, numerical analysis, dynamical systems, topology, number theory, and operations research.

• The BA degree has a strong math curriculum, but also has room to add minors or a double major.
• The BS degree has more depth and breadth in mathematics itself, which is valued in some industries and by graduate schools.
• We also offer a minor in actuarial science that prepares students to pass the first two actuarial exams (and includes some material from other exams) as well as fulfilling some of the VEE (Validation by Educational Experience) requirements of the profession.

Capstone Experience - During your capstone course, you will choose a mathematical topic that interests you and study it in-depth, both individually and in a group and give a presentation of your findings at the end of the semester. Some recent capstone topics include Econometrics, Sporadic Groups and Error-Correcting Codes, Airline Planning and Recovery, Chaos, Discrete

Experienced Faculty - You will learn from highly qualified professors with broad and varied research interests, including abstract algebra, real and complex analysis, topology, statistics, combinatorics, and applied mathematics. They hold PhDs from institutions such as Princeton University, the University of Michigan, The Ohio State University, among others. They are at Cedarville because they love the Lord, enjoy teaching, treasure the opportunity to invest in college students, and are crazy about mathematics!

What can you do with a math degree? Graduates from our program have pursued a variety of careers, including the following:

• Actuaries at companies such as Lincoln Financial Group, WesternSouthern Life, CMG Life Services, snf Blue Cross/Blue Shield of North Carolina
• Assistant Head and Scheduling Deputy in the Mathematics Department at Purdue University
• Department of Network Security, U.S. Bank
• Director of Custom Analytics at Dunnhumby USA
• Federal Reserve Board
• Huntington Ingalls Industries/Newport News Shipbuilding, simulation department
• Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
• Mathematics Education Professor at Virginia Tech University
• Risk Analyst for ABS, consulting on Department of Defense contracts
• Rocket Scientist at the National Air and Space Intelligence Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
• Scientist in Natural Language Processing at Pacific Northwest National Laboratories
• Server Product Design Finance at Amazon
• Software Developer at Northrop Grumman
• Teacher at STEM academy in Springfield, Ohio

Our graduates have also attended graduate schools and earned master’s degrees and PhDs in math as well as other fields. Some of those graduate schools include:

• Air Force Institute of Technology (MS, Applied Math; MS, Information Assurance; MS, Engineering; MS, Operations Research)
• Auburn University (PhD, Mathematics)
• Clemson University (PhD, Mathematical Sciences)
• Johns Hopkins University (PhD, Mathematics)
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) (MBA, Finance)
• Purdue University (PhD, Mathematics)
• The Ohio State University (PhD, Mathematics Education)
• University of Michigan (PhD, Applied and Interdisciplinary Mathematics)

Internships - An internship is not required for a math major, but it can be a very valuable and rewarding experience. Our math majors have completed internships with companies and organizations such as the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Air Force Institute of Technology, U.S. Bank (Network Security Division), and various insurance companies. You can also enhance your mathematics education by participating in an REU (Research Experience for Undergraduates).

Conferences - You will have the opportunity to attend undergraduate math conferences at nearby universities, and female students can attend the Nebraska Undergraduate Conference for Women in Mathematics. You may also be nominated to attend the annual Ohio Space Grant Consortium Student Research Project Symposium.

Math Nights - You’ll join your fellow math majors for informal “Math Nights” for mathematically minded students and professors.

Competitions - You may be invited to participate in the William Lowell Putnam Mathematics Competition. The Putnam exam is a national exam that measures mathematical creativity. One recent Cedarville student, who was in the top 500 (out of 3,000-4,000), was awarded a place in a program called Math in Moscow, where he spent a semester studying math in Moscow with Russian mathematicians (in English). Also, the Computer Science program sponsors an annual Computer Programming contest in which many math majors participate.

Campus Employment Opportunities - You will be able to earn income on campus while using your math skills. You can tutor students through The Cove, Cedarville’s academic enrichment center, or privately on your own, or even participate in tutoring ministries through Cedarville’s Christian Ministries office. You can also find employment as a grader for mathematics professors.