Applied Mathematics

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Duquesne’s bachelor of science (B.S.) in applied mathematics is an interdisciplinary program taught by mathematics and statistics faculty working in application areas such as medicine, mathematical biology, neuroscience, genomics, image processing and the theory of learning.

As a student in our program, you will explore a curriculum emphasizing the practical applications of mathematical theory and concepts to real-world problems. The core curriculum includes courses in calculus, linear algebra, differential equations, probability and statistics, numerical methods and analysis. Applied math majors have the opportunity to take additional advanced mathematics courses (quantitative track) or study applications of mathematics in other disciplines through the biomedical engineering, chemistry, environmental science, econometrics, finance, computer science and physics tracks.  

In addition, all applied math majors take a course in scientific writing and communication as well as a professional development course. These courses will provide you with skills in resume design, professional communication, interview prep and much more.  

Once you’ve completed your degree, you’ll be prepared for careers in fields such as data science, financial modeling, engineering and scientific research—or further study of more advanced topics in graduate school. And in those professional spheres, you will be ready to take on roles such as data analyst, actuary, financial analyst, operations research analyst, mathematician, statistician, software engineer, risk analyst, data scientist and research scientist.

Program Type

Major

Degree

Bachelor's

Duration

4-year

Required Credit Hours

39

"I've further developed my understanding of the application of mathematics in solving real-world problems, strengthening my computation and scientific communication abilities and giving me a head start in the development of my professional research skill set."

—Kayla Kraeuter, double major in applied math and biomedical engineering and math tutor

Program Requirements

All applied mathematics majors must take the core courses: 

  • MATH 115 Calculus I
  • MATH 116 Calculus II
  • MATH 215 Calculus III
  • MATH 250 Foundations of Mathematics
  • MATH 301 Probability and Statistics I
  • MATH 310 Linear Algebra
  • MATH 410 Advanced Linear Algebra
  • MATH 415W Real Analysis I
All applied mathematics majors must take a 3-credit programming course chosen from one of the following: 
  • COSC 150 Computer Programming: C++ 
  • COSC 160 Computer Programming: Java
  • COSC 170 Computer Programming: Python
All applied mathematics majors must take at least 8 credits in science coursework that includes one sequence (and corresponding labs) chosen from:
  • BIOL 111-112
  • BIOL 115-117
  • CHEM 121-122
  • PHYS 211-212
All applied mathematics majors must also take the following courses:
  • COMM 250 Technical Communication
  • MATH 142 Applied Math Professional Development

You must take 9 additional credit hours of mathematics courses at the 300-level or above. These must include at least two of the following:

  • MATH 302W Probability and Statistics II
  • MATH 325W Applied Statistics with Regression
  • MATH 308 Numerical Analysis
  • MATH 314 Differential Equations

Applied mathematics majors must complete one of the following tracks. 

Quantitative track: At least three courses chosen from the following. MATH 495 must be chosen as one of these courses: 

  • MATH 416W Real Analysis II
  • MATH 420 Introduction to Complex Variables
  • MATH 471 Optimization
  • MATH 473 Statistical Computing 
  • MATH 445 Prediction and Classification Modeling 
  • MATH 495 Applied Mathematics Capstone

Applied tracks: Applied math majors with second majors or minors in quantitative disciplines may choose from a suite of technical coursework in their field with substantive mathematical content in lieu of the quantitative track. Options include the following:

Biomedical engineering track: At least three courses chosen from the following:
  • BMED 430
  • BMED 431
  • BMED 444
  • BMED 453
  • BMED 456
Chemistry/biochemistry/environmental chemistry track:
At least three courses chosen from:
  • CHEM 301
  • CHEM 328
  • CHEM 329
  • CHEM 401
  • CHEM 402
  • CHEM 412
Computer science track: Students must take COSC 300 and choose at least two of these courses:
  • COSC 305
  • COSC 308*
  • COSC 410
  • COSC 418
  • COSC 423
  • COSC 425
  • COSC 435
*If not applied toward the 36 credits of MATH courses as MATH 308

Econometrics track: At least three courses chosen from:
  • ECON 301
  • ECON 481W
  • ECON 484W
Finance track: At least three courses chosen from:
  • FINC 313
  • FINC 334
  • FINC 324
  • FINC 338
  • FINC 433W 
Physics track: At least three courses chosen from:
  • PHYS 302
  • PHYS 332
  • PHYS 374
  • PHYS 401
  • PHYS 461
  • PHYS 470
  • PHYS 473
  • PHYS 474
  • PHYS 475
  • PHYS 485