Course Presentaion: Mathematical Sciences

Mathematical Sciences at Brunel University

Dr Rhiannon Hall

Lecturer in the Department of Mathematical Sciences

School of Information Systems, Computing and Mathematics

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Brunel: The Greatest Briton?

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Brunel University: Background A University since 1966.

Departments of Law, Management, Sports Science, English, Politics, ... not just science and engineering.

Before 1992, all students did sandwich courses.

About 14,000 students, all now here at Uxbridge.

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Department of Mathematical Sciences

What we have to offer1. Campus university in excellent location with wide

variety of student activities.

2. Good range of courses with strong research base.

3. Financial help / scholarships.

4. Strong student support in a student-centred department and university.

5. Professional placement available for all undergraduate degree courses.

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Location

Brunel University is:

45 minutes by tube from central London.

A few minutes drive from M40, M25, M4.

A local bus ride from Heathrow Airport.

40 miles from Oxford.

Close to the Chiltern Hills, the Thames …

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Uxbridge Campus Safe self-contained site. All teaching is here. £250M development completed. £13M indoor and outdoor sports arenas. 4549 student rooms, most with en-suite facilities. One-stop-shop for student services. Library building doubled in size. Complete refit to the refectory building.

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Brunel Sports Facilities

“Brunel is awesome. The university has really done great for us. They really show us a lot of love."

“Big up to Brunel”

Brunel Sport

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André Wright, a (now graduated) maths student won the “performance of the championship” award at the British University Indoor Championships for winning the 200m.

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Vibrant International Culture More than 2000 overseas students.

Brunel students come from 110 countries.

Rich and diverse culture.

Extra curricula activities: clubs, societies, arts centre.

2. Courses

Six different Maths undergraduate courses.

Information Systems, Computing and Mathematics with an Integrated Foundation Year.

Postgraduate courses (MSc and PhD).

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Foundation Year A pre-degree year for those who are not fully

qualified to start on a degree course.

Not a “foundation degree”, but part of an integrated course.

Leads into degree courses in Mathematics, Business Computing, Computer Science and Computer Systems Engineering.

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Foundation Year Progression to BSc is automatic for passing students.

The content is the maths and computing needed to start on those degree courses.

The fees for the Foundation year: £3,500, followed by £9,000 per annum for the three years of BSc.

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Mathematics Degrees

Mathematics (BSc and MMath)

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Financial Mathematics (BSc and MMath)

Mathematics with Computer Science

Mathematics & Statistics with Management

Mathematics Degrees Building from where you are.

Broad-based courses with a common core, giving some flexibility.

Key concepts and techniques (algebra, analysis / calculus, discrete maths, statistics, etc) and a range of applications.

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From School To University Moving from how to why. Develop and apply a toolbox of ideas to a variety of problems. Solve complex problems requiring many steps and careful planning. Think and work independently. Experiment and innovate. Communicate your results.

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Level OneAt level 1:

Modules are designed carefully to build on previous knowledge.

Core Maths is initially entirely taught in small groups (15-20) to ease the transition to university.

Small group projects throughout the year.

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Level 1 Group Projects Real world applications of maths

Eg. Fractals, modelling ice melting, modelling population growth, webpage ranking, statistics

Employability Eg. Group work, MS Excel skills, experience

managing and working through projects Regular meetings with personal tutor

Level Two New applicable mathematics:

Multi-variable calculus.

Predictive linear models in statistics.

More abstract mathematics like group theory.

Some specialist topics in joint courses: Marketing / accounting.

Risk modelling.

Software development.

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Level 2 Careers & Employability Days

Training Day (October)

Eg. CV writing, job application forms, cover letters, etc.

Assessment Day (November)

Eg. Mock interviews and role play, psychometric tests, networking skills, etc.

Careers Day (February)

A variety of alumni & employers give talks, advice, Q&A sessions on career options.

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Final Year Project One third of the final year (22% of final degree mark).

Wide choice of topics.

Often based on current research.

Individual weekly supervision.

70 page dissertation and presentation.

MMath students also do this at level 3.

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Mathematics Degrees Coding and encryption

Option pricing

Operational research

Stochastic models, eg. Financial data

People surfing the internet

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MMath Degrees Integrated Master’s degree over 4 years (or 5 with placement).

Available for Mathematics and Financial Mathematics.

Can be entered at level 1, or by transfer at the end of level 2.

The first two years are the same as the BSc; the final two years take you beyond this to Master’s level.

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A full year of work between years 2 and 3 of your academic studies

Valuable work experience, and help provided in the curriculum to find a placement

Better chance of finding a graduate job & taste of your chosen career path and gain new skills

Improve your final year results Earn money while on placement Sandwich course graduates earn more than their non-placement

peers

Sandwich Degrees (Work Placement)

Recent work placement destinations Accenture AVCO systems British Airways Centrica British Telecom General Electric Teach First Xerox GlaxoSmithKline

Goldman Sachs IBM Intel NetApp KPMG Orange Nissan O2 Bank of England

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A few recent graduate job titles Biostatistician Statistical Programmer Junior Financial

Analyst Maintenance Revenue

Administrator Treasury Analyst Business Analyst Operational Research

Accounts Assistant Operations Assistant Actuary Data Analyst Others worked in: Risk Management Portfolio and Fund

Management

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Research Key factor in the reputation of the School

and Department Research areas include

Numerical analysis Operational research Mathematical physics Stochastic modelling and financial risk Applied analysis and mathematical biology Statistics Combinatorics

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Research excellenceIn the most recent (2008) Research Assessment Exercise: 87% of our research is of international significance. 16% of our research is world-leading. Top 3 in London area.

Research underpins our course planning, and particularly the Final Year Project.

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3. Financial support (2013) Over 700 new scholarships for 2013. 1 in 5 will receive financial support from Brunel.

http://www.brunel.ac.uk/courses/ug/fees/brunel-support-2013

Several types of scholarships: Academic Excellence. National Scholarship Programme. Local Boroughs.

For students who make Brunel their firm choice.

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3. Mathematics Scholarships Up to 10 scholarships each year.

For students with AAB at A-level (including A in Maths or Further Maths).

£1000 each year (except placement year).

Continuation depends on high standard of work.

For students who make Brunel their firm choice.

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4. Student Support Departmental Personal Tutor System Academic Skills Service (ASK) Blackboard (VLE) Accommodation Office Work Placement and Careers Service Student Union Information Centre Disability and Dyslexia Office Counselling Service / Medical Centre Chaplaincy

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What our students say…Katharina Schwaiger graduated from Brunel University with a BSc in Financial Mathematics. She went on to do a PhD, also at Brunel University.

“The Mathematics department and in particular its lecturers have been very helpful and easy to approach throughout my experience at Brunel University.”

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After her PhD, she worked as a financial engineer at QuIC Financial Technologies, who provide the world’s leading financial organisations with enterprise solutions for risk management, pricing and financial analytics.

Entry Requirements BSc Courses A-Level: ABB, including Grade A in Mathematics. IBDP: 33 points, including 6 in Higher Level Mathematics. Advanced Diploma: Progression Diploma Grade A in

Engineering; IT; or Business, Administration & Finance. Plus A-Level Mathematics at grade A for Additional and Specialist Learning.

Access: Entry usually via the Information Systems, Computing and Mathematics with an Integrated Foundation Year.

All must also have 5 GCSEs at grade C or higher, including English and Maths.

Entry Requirements MMath Courses A-Level: AAA, including Grade A in Mathematics. IBDP: 37 points, including 6 in Higher Level Mathematics. Irish Leaving Certificate: AAAAB, including grade A in

Mathematics. Scottish Advanced Highers: AAA, including grade A in

Mathematics. Advanced Diploma or BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma: Should

apply for BSc, then if grades are high enough, transfer to the MMath at the end of Year 2.

Access: Entry usually via the Information Systems, Computing and Mathematics with an Integrated Foundation Year.

All must also have 5 GCSEs at grade C or higher, including English and Maths.

Entry Requirements Foundation Year A-Level: CDD, preferably including Maths or Physics. IBDP or certificates with a total of 26 points. Advanced Diploma: Progression Diploma grade D in one of

Construction and the Built Environment; Engineering; Society, Health and Development; IT; Environment and Land-Based Studies; Manufacturing and Product Design; Business, Administration and Finance; Public Services; or Retail Business. Plus and A-Level at grade C for Additional and Specialist Learning.

BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma: MMM in a related subject. Access: Pass. Non-Standard Qualifications: Apply on a case by case basis.

All must also have 5 GCSEs at grade C or higher, including English and Maths.

And …

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