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Handbook 1997 : Faculty of Arts : Mathematics
Mathematics is the oldest of the exact sciences, and among the oldest of all intellectual disciplines. It has long been valued as the training ground for systematic, logical and analytical thought and it contains ideas as profound and beautiful as may be encountered anywhere. A knowledge of Mathematics is invaluable for professional life in the pure and applied sciences, as well as in commerce and industry, and an understanding of Mathematics is invaluable in making sense of a rapidly changing and increasingly technologically complex world.
Mathematically trained graduates have found many rewarding and challenging career options open to them in recent years. They are needed in secondary and tertiary education, scientific and engineering research and development, finance and commerce, and other areas. They may work for companies of any size, government departments or statutory authorities, educational institutions, or they work independently as consultants. Mathematicians assist their employers or clients in making optimal decisions in production, distribution, storage, scheduling, facility planning, pricing, investment, and many other areas of commerce and industry. They model industrial processes, and collaborate with scientists in all areas of research and development. Mathematicians are also valued for their well-developed analytical skills, even in areas where specific mathematical techniques are not employed.
Available first-year subjects are listed under the preceding Mathematical Sciences entry, to which the reader's attention is directed. The only requirements for entry into later years are those associated with prerequisites and corequisites for individual later-year subjects.
The Mathematics single major requires the following sequence.
Second year:
3 second-year Mathematics subjects (rated as 11.1 Arts points each);
4 second-year subjects from approved departments of the Arts Faculty (66.7 points).
Third year:
4 third-year Mathematics subjects (rated as 12.5 Arts points each);
3 third-year subjects from approved departments of the Arts Faculty (50 points).
Subjects chosen must be consistent with prerequisite requirements. Examples, given for illustrative purposes only, are as follows:
(a) Emphasising advanced pure mathematics (entry requires the invitation of the Head of the Department of Mathematics)
618-111, 618-112; 618-201, 618-202, and any one of 618-231, 618-261; 618-301, 618-302, 618-321; and any one of 618-351, 618-352.
(b) Emphasising studies in Operations Research (permission to enter 618-121 required)
618-121, 618-122, 618-231, 618-261; any one of 618-201, 618-202, 618-252, 618-262; 618-361, 618-362 and any two of 618-351, 618-352, 618-381.
(c) Emphasising studies in Operations Research
618-141, 618-142; 618-200 (first semester stream); 618-231 (second semester stream); 618-261, 618-361, 618-362; any two of 618-351, 618-352, 618-381.
(d) Emphasising industrial and applied mathematics or mathematics education
618-121, 618-130 or all three of 618-130 (second semester stream), 141, 142;
618-200 (first semester stream), 618-231 (second semester stream); 618-232;
any four of 618-331, 618-341, 618-342, 618-351, 618-352, 618-381.
Options are considerably enhanced by taking more than two first-year subjects from the offerings of the Departments of Mathematics and Statistics and the School of Mathematical Sciences.
There is no distinction between pass and honours streams in first, second, or third year, although some Mathematics subjects, designated as 'Advanced' and only available by invitation, are especially suited for potential honours candidates. The normal prerequisites for entry into the fourth-year Honours program in Mathematics require more third-year Mathematics subjects than are usually allowed to be included in the points for the Bachelor of Arts degree. Bachelor of Arts students are not normally able to undertake a fourth-year Honours program in Mathematics without a significant overload beyond the usual 100 points per year. However, high-achieving students following a single major stream, with carefully chosen second and third year subjects, and prepared to select from a restricted range of fourth-year offerings, may undertake a fourth-year Honours program in Mathematics.
Bachelor of Arts students contemplating Honours studies in Mathematics, or any combined honours program involving Mathematics and another Arts discipline are strongly urged to seek advice from the relevant departments as early as possible, and to obtain written confirmation from the departments and from the Dean of the Faculty of Arts that their proposed course of study is acceptable. Bachelor of Arts students with a strong inclination towards Honours programmes in Mathematics or Statistics are strongly urged to explore the option of transferring to the Bachelor of Science degree, or to the Bachelor of Science/Bachelor of Arts joint degree program.
Table 1 shows second-year subjects offered in 1997. Further details of these subjects may be found in the Science Faculty section of the University of Melbourne Undergraduate Studies Handbook.
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Table 2 shows third-year subjects offered in 1997. Further details of these subjects may be found in the Science Faculty section of the University of Melbourne Undergraduate Studies Handbook.
Entry into the Mathematics Honours programme at fourth year requires the permission of the Head of the Department of Mathematics. The student is usually required to have obtained adequate results in four subjects chosen from among 618-301, 618-302, 618-321, 618-322, 618-331, 618-332, 618-341, 618-342, 618-361, 618-362. Bachelor of Arts students will not normally be able to meet these requirements without an overload beyond the normal 100 points in third year, but students with outstanding previous achievement in Mathematics may be accepted into Honours in Mathematics, or Combined Honours in Mathematics and another Arts discipline with fewer than four third-year Mathematics subjects. Enquiries should be directed to the Department of Mathematics Fourth-year Coordinator (Assoc. Professor Neumann).
Honours students are encouraged to undertake some part-time tutoring within the Department of Mathematics. For further details, consult the Director of First-year Studies (Dr Barrington). Students should discuss any financial difficulties with the HECS Charge with the Fourth-year Coordinator (Assoc. Professor Neumann).
For more information, please contact:
Department of Mathematics
The University of Melbourne
telephone: (03) 9344-5550
fax: (03) 9344 4599
World-Wide-Web: http://www.maths.mu.oz.au/
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Handbook 1997 : Faculty of Arts : Mathematics
Status: OFFICIAL 1997 Last Modified: Wednesday March 12 3:36 pm SGML to HTML Conversion: Information Technology Services Authorised by: Academic Registrar Email Enquiries: Course_Information@registrar.unimelb.edu.au
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