Math summer orientation

Help for students in mathematical majors

planning the

Fall 2013 schedule.

Setup

• Headphones with microphone

• Need your own virtual office account

• Recommend getting a short URL (go.illinois.edu webtools or tinyurl) for students to use.

• Powerpoint presentation tailored to your major(s)

Arrangements

• Email students in advance to schedule an appointment.

• Make sure students confirm their appointment time!

• Keep in mind that China is 13 hours ahead, Korea 14. Morning appointments are good! (Late evening?)

• Math maintains a website in case students don’t receive adviser e-mail.

Checklist for students

• Confirm appointment time

• Have passwords set and ready

• Use fastest possible internet connection, preferably not wireless

• Have headphones!!

• Test out Blackboard Collaborate in advance.

• Placement tests, EPT

• College Homework

Elluminate skills

• Use “highlighter,” “pencil,” and type text

• Use text chat feature• Turn off student microphone if

needed• “Application share” web browser

(better than web tour)• Have student share his web

browser or desktop when registering.

• Move students to separate rooms

Problems

• Student microphone not on.

• Audio feedback

• Student can’t share application

• Student has internet issues!

• http://math.illinois.edu/~ccccc/adv/applicationsharing.png

• You spend so much time advising that you run out of time to register. Group vs. individual appointment.

Your adviser todayYou will be advised by

Alison Champion

Assistant Director of Undergraduate Studies in Math

Your adviser todayYou will be advised by one of

• Anna DeJarnette, graduate student in Math Education

• Noel DeJarnette, graduate student in Mathematics

• Chris Cunningham, Math Academic Programs Specialist

• David Unger, Statistics adviser

• Steve Herzog, Computer Science Coordinator of Academic Programs

Getting started

• Freshmen should be sure to let their adviser know about A-levels, IB exams, or AP exams taken, with scores/grades if possible, once we start working on your individual schedule.

Placement Exams

• A placement exam helps us choose courses for you.

• You should have taken the ALEKS Math placement exam already and placement exams for languages, Chemistry, or Physics if you plan or need to take those courses here on campus.

Proficiency tests• A placement exam helps us choose courses; a

proficiency exam can earn you college credit.• Note that on THURSDAY, AUGUST 22, 1-2:30

PM, 314 Altgeld Hall, is a Calculus I proficiency exam for new students. No sign-up needed. If you have learned calculus but do not already have official University of Illinois credit for Math 220, please sit for this exam. There is no penalty if you do not pass. Calculators are not permitted, but the exam is multiple-choice, so you may be able to pass even if you don’t have time to study before the test. Please bring your i-card and a pencil to the exam. Results are available in 313 Altgeld Hall from 1-4 pm on Friday, August 24, in person.

• There is another proficiency exam date available for almost any math class, but you must sign up online by 5pm Monday, August 26, to take the 3-hour long-answer exam from 7-10 pm on Wednesday, August 28. No calculators. Only one exam may be taken on that date. Register at

• http://go.illinois.edu/mathproficiency

Composition I

• Several different ways to complete this freshman writing requirement

• ESL 114 or 115 composition courses, based on English Placement Test score

• Rhetoric course, depending on ACT English score

• CMN 111/112 (strong English skills and strong ACT English score). Short speeches + writing.

Rhetoric coursesStudents must take the sequence they were placed in to fulfill the requirement!

•Rhet 101 (+100) followed by Rhet 102 (+100)

•Rhet 103 followed by Rhet 104

•Rhet 105 (fall if UIN is even, spring if UIN is odd) – very intense 4 credit course

•Students placed in Rhet 105 may also choose CMN 111+112.

ESL Composition

• Students who complete ESL do NOT need to take Rhet courses; ESL 112 or 115 completes the Comp I requirement.

• ESL instructors have special training to help with writing issues of non-native speakers of English AND general composition.

• Rhet instructors are NOT qualified or trained to help non-native speakers of English

ESL Composition

• Some students are required to take the English Placement Test (EPT)

• Other students may choose to take the EPT, even if they are not required to do it.

• ONLY students who take the EPT may take ESL composition courses.

English Placement Test

• If English is not your native language, you can sign up for the EPT at

http://go.illinois.edu/ept

Advanced Composition

• Must be done AFTER Comp I

• Learn to write well in a specific discipline

• Math majors with Calculus II credit might like Math 348

• Actuarial science students often choose BTW 250

• Usually NOT done in freshman year.

Language Other Than English

Ways to fulfill this requirement are…

• 4 years’ study in high school (one language)

• 4 semesters’ study in college (one language)

• Reach 4th level another way

• Reach 3rd level of two languages

• Proficiency exam here on campus

• If English is not your native language but you studied in the U.S. for part of high school, you can also submit middle school transcripts (6th/7th/8th grade) from your home country to help cover the 4-year requirement.

Language Other Than English

• Not exempt if you are a native speaker of another language

• Proficiency exams available

• EALC department offers Japanese, Korean, Chinese exams in August (23rd)

• Spanish offers exam in August

• Many other departments arrange individual exams

Language OtherThan English

• If you wish to continue with a language you started in high school, you MUST take the placement exam.

• You MUST start with the course you’re placed in, even if it’s lower than you expect

• Example: Placed in Span 103 after 4 years of Spanish in high school. Cannot jump to 4th level Spanish.

Language OtherThan English

• Note that beginning Spanish is NOT available.

• Parkland College teaches beginning Spanish, but tuition is not included in U of I tuition.

• Many, many other languages are available at U of I.

LAS orientation courses

• Courses are 1 credit hour

• Provides intro to our university and college issues

• LAS 101 is REQUIRED for all new freshmen

• Exception: James Scholar freshmen take LAS 122

CS orientation

• CS 100 orientation course for Math/CS, Stat/CS, CS majors

• Covers CS jobs, clubs, major

• No work required except attendance

• Must still enroll in LAS 101 (or LAS 122) as well

General Education

• General education gives you breadth in your studies

• Gen ed courses can be spread throughout your time here, but it’s good to cover most of them before junior year

General Education

Requirements

• 6 hours of Humanities & Arts (Historical/Philosophical and Literature & Arts)

• 6 hours of Social & Behavioral Sciences

• 6 hours of Natural Sciences & Technology (Physical Science and Life Science)

General Education

• 1 Western/Comparative Cultures course

• 1 Nonwestern or U.S. Minority Cultures course

• These two courses may “double-dip” with the previous 18 hours if chosen carefully

• Courses listed for both Western and Nonwestern may be counted for one, not both! (You choose which one.)

General Education

• Many general education classes fill up quickly

• Some general education courses have sections reserved for special groups. Those sections are not available unless you’re in the special group.

• Please identify many courses which you might like to take!

General Education

• Econ 102/103 are recommended for actuarial science majors (social science)

• Econ 102/103 are also required for College of Business freshman transfers.

• Psyc 100 is required for teaching programs, but not recommended for first semester freshmen (behavioral science)

Electives!

You must complete 120 credits to graduate. Your major and general ed courses use less than 90 hours, so you MUST take some courses just for fun!

Consider a minor, learning a new language, exploring courses which look fun or interesting, freshman Discovery courses...

Freshman Discovery

• Class size limited to 19.

• Freshmen only

• You may take only one Discovery course

• Some are electives (just for fun!) others are general education

• Taught by a professor, not a graduate teaching assistant!

Discovery courses

• Fall 2013 is your only chance to take a Discovery course!

• See http://provost.illinois.edu/programs/discovery/Courses_FA13.html

James Scholars

• James Scholars is the LAS honors program.

• In addition to LAS 122, James Scholars may consider taking another honors course this semester.

Campus Honors Program

• CHP is a very elite campuswide honors program.

• CHP students MUST take a CHP course (not just a general honors course) each semester.

Teaching

• Interested in teaching middle school or high school (grades 6-12)? Even just as your back-up plan?

• Teaching programs have special requirements, including courses which should be done freshman year.

• Tell me if you might want to be a teacher!

Computer Science

• CS 100: orientation (1 hr)

• CS 101: Programming for science/engineering (3 hrs)

• CS 125: Programming for CS majors, Math/CS, Stat/CS, CS minors (4 hours)

• CS 105: Computing for Business (3 hours)

Computer Science

• CS 101 recommended for math majors. Weekly labs, two major programming assignments. Currently uses Matlab and C.

• CS 125 required for Math/CS, Stat/CS, CS majors. Weekly labs, 7-8 major programming assignments. Uses Java.

Computer Science

• CS 105: counts only for actuarial science majors, not other mathematical majors. Uses Visual Basic & Excel.

• See https://agora.cs.illinois.edu/display/undergradProg/Intro+Courses+Explained for more info on intro CS courses.

• Stat majors take Stat 200 or 212 instead of a CS course.

Computer Science

• CS 173, Data Structures, is required for Math/CS and Stat/CS but has a prerequisite of CS 125.

Math Courses

• Math 220: Calculus for students who have not taken calculus before

• Math 221: Calculus I for students who have taken calculus previously

• Math 231: Calculus II (background of Math 220 or 221)

• Math 241: Calculus III, multivariable calculus

Math Courses

• Math 012 Algebra (expects ALEKS score of at least 30%)

• Math 115 Preparation for Calculus (requires ALEKS score of at least 50%)

• Math 220/221 require ALEKS score of at least 70%

Math Merit Workshop

• Available for Math 115, 220, 221, 231, 241

• Students in Merit Workshop sections attend the regular lecture but have 2-hour-long discussion sections.

• Discussions are spent doing hard worksheets in groups of 4-6, not watching the TA solve problems.

• Hard work pays off at test time!

Math prerequisites

• Students who do not earn the required ALEKS score for Math 115, 220, 221 by the start of the semester will be DROPPED from the course.

Math prerequisites

• You may retake ALEKS more than once. Each test costs $3.50.

• For $35 you can buy the ALEKS Learning Module as a refresher.

• Learning Module gives you access to unlimited retests and practice problems, for a limited number of weeks.

Advanced Placement

• AP Calculus AB: score of 4 or 5 gives credit for Math 220.

• AP Calculus BC: score of 4 or 5 gives credit for Math 220 & Math 231.

• AP Calculus BC score of 3, AB subscore of 4 or 5 gives credit for Math 220.

• Lower scores give no credit

Advanced Placement

• Students who plan to be teachers are encouraged to move back one level from actual AP credit.

• For example, if you earn a 5 on the BC Calculus exam, start in Math 231 instead of Math 241.

• Consult with your adviser about the best choices for you.

Advanced Placement

• If you don’t see credit for AP scores in your Illinois records, check your score report to see whether you sent your score to University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

• College Board will send scores for a fee. Priority/rush service is NOT necessary.

International Baccalaureate

• IB Math SL: no college credit

• IB Math HL: 6 or 7 earns credit for Math 220

• IB Further Math: 6 or 7 earns credit for Math 231 and Math 213

A-levels

• Advanced Level Certificate with grade of C or higher in Mathematics earns credit for Math 220.

• Students with A-level credit may consider proficiency exam for Math 231, Math 241, depending on background.

• Original A-level certificate must be submitted to International Admissions when you get it.

Advanced Math

• Math 347: Intro to Proofs (Math 231 prerequisite, Math 241 even better). Intro to reading advanced math and to writing proofs in a variety of areas of math. Transition from calculus to advanced math.

• Honors section available (now) to extremely good students with Math 231 credit.

Advanced Math

• Math 416, Applied Linear Algebra

• Required for math majors

• Prerequisite: Math 241

• Math 347 also good prereq

• Honors section available (now) to extremely good students

Advanced Math

• Math 441, differential equations for math majors

• Math 463/Stat 400: Probability & Stat I (Stat Dept)

Math 241 prerequisite

• Math 461, Probability Theory (Math Dept)

• Math 210, Theory of Interest (actuarial sci, need Math 231)

• Math 409, Actuarial Stat II

Actuarial Science

• Math 210 covers most of Exam 2/FM, financial math professional actuarial exam.

• Math 408, Actuarial Stat I, covers Exam 1/P, probability.

• May substitute Math 461 for 408.

• May substitute Stat 400+Stat 410 for Math 408+Math 409

Finance 221

For actuarial science students only, prerequisites are

• a Statistics course

• Accy 200, Accy 201, or a course in Financial Accounting

• CS 105 or ability to use Excel

• PLEASE ignore prerequisites on course catalog.

Actuarial Science

For loads of information, see the Advising Notes link from

http://math.illinois.edu/~gorvett

This website has a 4-year schedule, course info, exam info, and answers most advising questions (including office hours for Rick Gorvett).

Actuarial Science

• Director of the Program

Prof. Rick Gorvett

gorvett@illinois.edu

See him by appointment during the semester—online sign-up linked from his webpage.

Freshman/sophomore advising

Ms. Alison Champion

abc@illinois.edu

Mathematics major

• All students do “Core” courses

• Also choose a Concentration

• Supporting coursework

Math Concentrations

• General Math: most flexible, most popular choice

• “Graduate Prep”: actually PhD prep for students who wish to go directly to a doctoral program after completing B.Sc. Most intensive option.

• Note that any option will prepare you for a master’s program.

Math Concentrations

• Applied Math: engineering oriented

• Operations Research: business/optimization

• Teacher Education: for those who wish to teach grades 6-12. Only U.S. students may enter the teaching program.

• Choose a concentration within 1-2 semesters of completing Math 347/348

Supporting Coursework

• Required of all math majors

• Purpose: specialize in an area outside of math

• 3 choices: second major, ANY minor, or 12 credit hours of supporting coursework

Supporting Coursework

• “Supporting coursework” is a single math-related area outside of mathematics.

• Must take at least 12 credits in the area

• At least some of the courses must be advanced (300-level or 400-level)

Supporting Coursework

• Examples:

• Physics

• Economics

• Philosophy (logic or science-oriented Phil courses)

• Another science

• Computer Science (CS 101/125 not counted and courses listed both in Math and CS not counted)

Supporting Coursework

• Other areas possible if you can justify how they’re related to math.

• Supporting coursework requires adviser approval.

Math Advisers

• Ms. Alison Champion

abc@illinois.edu

• Mr. Chris Cunningham

ccccc@illinois.edu

• Prof. Robert Muncaster (Dr. Bob)

muncast@illinois.edu

All in 313 Altgeld Hall, which is the Math Undergrad Office.

Math/CS & Stat/CS

Adviser

Dr. Steve Herzog

1210 Siebel Center

smherzog@illinois.edu

Statistics

Adviser

David Unger

103 Illini Hall

dunger@illinois.edu

David answers e-mail quickly and has weekly office hours, schedule varies by semester.

http://publish.illinois.edu/dunger/

Helpful websites

• http://courses.illinois.edu

Information about current courses, general education, all majors/minors, and link to register!

• http://las.illinois.edu

Helpful information and forms

• http://registrar.illinois.edu

Financial info, transcripts, DARS audit

Deadlines

• September 9: Last day to add a semester-long class. You can change your schedule between August 23-September 9.

• October 18: Last day to DROP a class. Before this date you can drop any class as long as you have at least 12 credits. After this date you must petition to the College of LAS and have documentation of extenuating circumstances such as extended illness, mental health issues, or other outside problems. A committee will review the petition but may force you to stay in the class and not drop/withdraw.

Schedule

• You must register for 12-18 hours. 14-16 is recommended for your first semester.

• You must have at least 12 credit hours by the first day of the semester.

• Final exams run December 13-20. Plan to be on campus through December 20!! There is an exam 7-10pm that day.

Schedule

• For students taking calculus, 1 math class is enough.

• For students beyond calculus, 2 math/stat classes are recommended.

• Students who take 3 math/stat classes in one semester usually earn very poor grades. If you wish to try this, wait until you have completed a semester with A or A+ grades in two tough math classes.

Registration

• Have a long list of classes which interest you—math AND general education AND electives!!

• Have your passwords set, including Enterprise password!!

• Read up on the classes you want at the CLASS SCHEDULE at http://courses.illinois.edu

Registration errors

• ALWAYS check the Class Schedule when you get a registration error.

• Registration program has little helpful information. Class Schedule has MUCH detail not found anywhere else!

• Error messages mean that there’s an error, but the messages themselves may be wrong!

Scheduling

• You can add or drop classes or change sections until midnight Central Daylight Time tomorrow (approximately 1.5 days).

• Please stay with the schedule recommended by your adviser!

• You also have the chance to change your schedule August 23 – September 9.

Scheduling

• Many classes which are full now may have seats available later when other students change their schedules.

• Keep trying!

• If you add a new class after the semester begins, it is YOUR job to contact the instructor to ask about material and assignments/quizzes you have missed and how to catch up.

Math advising

• General math advising is available at mathadvising@illinois.edu

• dunger@illinois.edu is most helpful with Statistics questions.

• smherzog@illinois.edu is helpful with Computer Science questions.

• See the actuarial website for actuarial help!