Mathematics Major, BS

College Requirements

Arts and Sciences 

Prerequisites

Major Requirements

The major consists of 37 semester hours of mathematics courses.

SAMPLE PROGRAMS

There are many careers one can pursue with a mathematics major. Sample programs for two different goals are listed below. Additional information is available in the Department of Mathematics office.

Mathematics (Industrial Employment)

Mathematics (Preparation for Graduate School)

Honors Concentration

The Mathematics Department Honors Program offers highly talented students an accelerated curricular path that permits them to enroll in graduate-level mathematics courses as early as the junior year, making them highly competitive for graduate fellowships upon completion of a Bachelor of Science degree. In addition to a more rapid curriculum, the honors program offers enhanced academic advising and opportunities for students to interact with their peers through the Undergraduate Honors Seminar (MATH 497 ) in which honors students will discuss their theses and other undergraduate research projects.

For purposes of the mathematics honors requirements, the upper-division mathematics GPA (MGPA) consists of the GPA for MATH 300  (MATH 307 ), all mathematics courses used to fulfill the requirements for part (2) of the mathematics major, and mathematics graduate courses numbered 510 or higher.

Students who wish to participate in the honors concentration must meet the requirements for, and officially declare, a mathematics major with honors concentration. A student may declare this concentration after completing MATH 300  (or MATH 307 ) if his/her cumulative MGPA is at least 3.4. The mathematics honors concentration must be declared prior to the last 60 hours of enrollment (usually this means prior to the beginning of the junior year). The 60 hours requirement may be waived for students having a large number of transfer, AP, or other credits not earned at the University of Tennessee.

To continue as a mathematics major with honors concentration the student must:

• Maintain a 3.4 or higher cumulative MGPA. (Any mathematics honors student whose cumulative MGPA drops below 3.4 in a given semester may keep the honors concentration provided the cumulative MGPA returns to 3.4 after the subsequent semester and remains above 3.4 until graduation.)
• Attend at least three mathematics-related public lectures (such as the Mathematics Junior Colloquium or a departmental seminar) during each semester.
• Make adequate progress towards completing the mathematics honors thesis at least one full semester prior to graduation.

The requirements to graduate with honors in mathematics are the same as those for the mathematics major except in part (2) only six courses at the 300-400 level are required, and at least two 400-level two-semester sequences must be taken, at least one of which must be an honors sequence. Moreover, the following requirements must be met.

• Graduate with an overall GPA of at least 3.25 and an MGPA of at least 3.4.
• Complete at least 4 hours of MATH 497 
• Complete at least 3 hours of MATH 498  and submit a completed thesis at least 30 calendar days prior to the end of the final semester of enrollment.
• Complete a total of 24 hours of honors courses or mathematics courses numbered 510 or higher (except seminars) for undergraduate credit, which may include courses used to fulfill other requirements to graduate with a mathematics honors concentration.

The honors category upon graduation is determined as follows: MGPA at least 3.4 – Honors; MGPA at least 3.6 – High Honors; MGPA at least 3.8 – Highest Honors.

Fifth Year Master of Science Program

Fifth Year Master of Science in Statistics Program

Students may earn a Bachelor of Science with a major in mathematics and a Master of Science with a major in statistics in five years following a similar program as above. For more information, contact the Department of Statistics, Operations and Management Science.