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Hi, All, The deadline to submit junior or senior research for campus-wide awards is April 13. See "Dean's, Chancellor's, & Steck Awards" under "Looming Deadlines." In this issue of the Mathematics Undergraduate Newsletter: Looming Deadlines http://www.math.ucsc.edu/undergraduate/opp/index.html - International Research Experiences for Students in Mathematics USA-Brazil Application Deadline - April 6 Career Center Events http://www2.ucsc.edu/careers/ - Law School Info Meeting with UC Davis & UC Hastings - April 10 Academic Success Workshops http://www2.ucsc.edu/csas/ - Effective Note-Taking Skills - April 18, 6-8 pm, McHenry Library, Room 325 Upcoming Colloquia http://natsci2.ucsc.edu/semedit/flyer.seminar.html?x=329 Wednesday, April 11 Wednesday, April 18 Other colloquia we hope to present spring quarter, not yet scheduled, feature Professor Martin Weissman on "Elliptic Functions", Professor Stefan Hildebrandt, Mathematics graduate student Dominic Dotterrer, and Mathematics seniors presenting their own research. Join us every Wednesday afternoon. Course Profile: Math 24 - Ordinary Differential Equations & Math 106B - Partial Differential Equations The Mathematics Department is offering Ordinary Differential Equations and Partial Differential Equations in the Spring quarter, taught by Debra Lewis. A differential equation is an equation that involves the derivatives of an unknown function represented by a dependent variable. Differential equations are a powerful tool in constructing mathematical models for the physical world. They describe all kinds of natural phenomena, from epidemics to the orbits of the planets. Many of the fundamental laws of physics, chemistry, biology, and economics can be formulated as differential equations. Prerequisites for Math 24, Ordinary Differential Equations, are either Math 22 or Math 23A, and Math 21 is recommended. For Math 106B, Partial Differential Equations, prerequisites are either Math 21 and 24 or AMS 27, and either Math 100 or Computer Science 101. Math 106A is recommended as preparation. Career Profile: Quantitative Finance Mathematicians with personality are in short supply, so if you love math and finance and are willing to head to graduate school, a shift into a quantitative finance career could pay off for you. Quantitative analysts are modern alchemists who transform raw data into intelligent business strategies. The need to slice and dice data cuts across industry lines. For instance, credit card company analysts develop mathematical algorithms to detect fraud, grocery store analysts interpret data on shoppers' habits and investment banking financial engineers support equity option trading. To break into the field, you'll need at least a Master's degree in math, econometrics, statistics, industrial engineering, finance, operations research or quantitative analysis. The supply of US graduates comfortable with the high-level math that analysts use is smaller than the supply of jobs, says Rita Raz, president of Analytic Recruiting. Your biggest competitors for entry-level jobs won't be American. "A lot of American kids dodge the quantitative courses," she says. "Students coming from China and India have it over the US kids on taking hard-core quantitative courses, but they also have to develop the ability to communicate and sell." How much you make in statistical analysis depends upon the degree you obtain. With a master's in statistics, expect anywhere from $50,000 to $65,000. With a PhD in quantitative analysis, you're looking at $75,000, and unless you go into investment banking, you won't be working 70 or 80 hours a week, Raz says. Investment banking is extremely competitive at the entry level, so quality of training and education matter, says E. Daniel Raz, who handles investment-banking recruitment for Analytic Recruiting. Once you're in, you'll find few competitors on your way up the career ladder. "The market of people with two-plus years of experience is very thin," he says. "The price really goes up if the person is able to communicate inside a financial institution and can do the work, as well as sell and explain and make it comfortable for people to deal with." After earning an undergraduate degree, students seeking advanced training in quantitative analysis enter either a master's or PhD program, says Dr. Bin Gu, assistant professor of information, risk and operational management at the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin. For either program at McCombs, students need prerequisite math courses, including statistics, algebra, calculus, probability, and programming, he says. Within quantitative analysis, students pursue one of two tracks: applied or theoretical analysis. "What most of my colleagues do is use quantitative analysis in finance marketing," Gu says of the applied track. "Another side is theoretical -- developing estimators. Most PhD programs have openings on the applied side." The most successful students are those who have good scores on the quantitative reasoning section of the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) and who can break down a complex problem into small components to see how things are made up, he adds. Overall employment in quantitative finance is expected to increase faster than average for all occupations, resulting from increased investment by businesses and individuals. Many firms are adding investment advice to their list of services and many banks are entering the securities brokerage and investment banking fields and will increasingly need the skills of quantitative analysts. Career Opportunities in Government If you're interested in a career with high job security and great benefits, in which you can also make a difference in thousands of people's lives, consider taking a job with the federal or state government. With 1.8 million workers on its payroll, the federal government is by far the nation's biggest employer. Its annual revenues of $3.3 trillion eclipse those of Fortune 500 companies like General Motors, AT&T and Microsoft. And it offers competitive pay, health and retirement benefits, and generous vacation time and holidays. There are numerous jobs available with the government at every level and in offices all over the United States and also overseas. Jobs include operations research analyst, survey statistician, computer scientist, actuary, and applied mathematician, to name a few. To become a government employee, you must first take a civil service exam. You can apply for various jobs after passing the exam. As a student, you can become involved in internships and part-time employment while finishing your degree, which could lead to full-time employment upon graduation. If working for the government sounds like a good choice for you, search current job postings for federal jobs at http://www.usajobs.gov/ and explore student opportunities at http://www.federaljobs.net/student.htm. Visit http://www.ca.gov/Employment/Jobs.html for state job postings and http://www.math.ucsc.edu/undergraduate/opp/fellowships.html#re07 for fellowship programs in the California Senate and in California Judicial branch offices. --
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