What's Your Major? - Mathematics

Hi everybody. My name is Ethan. I'm a third year here at Virginia Tech. I'm double majoring in chemistry and math. I'm in the traditional math concentration, which means we learn about a lot of different aspects of math. I chose to major in math because of how interdisciplinary it is. The skills that you learn in math have applications to a lot of different other fields of science. Personally, I'm interested in the applications to chemistry, but I have friends who pair math with finance, physics, computer science, and even environmental science. Math major offers four different tracks, the traditional option is the most well-rounded, while the applied computational track focuses on the applications of math to other disciplines. We also have a concentration in applied discrete math, which focuses on computer science and is also a math education track for those who want to teach. In terms of research opportunities, math majors can get involved all across campus and whatever interests them. Personally, I apply the ideas I learned in math to chemistry research. I have friends who apply their math skills through research and computer science, physics, finance, and biology. After graduation, I'm planning to continue on to graduate school and I'm interested in researching computational modeling and theoretical chemistry. So majoring in math sets me up with the skills they need to succeed in that region.