[baxtr]

> Lesson Ten: Mathematics is still the queen of the sciences. > When an undergraduate asks me whether he or she should major in mathematics rather than in another field that I will simply call X, my answer is the following: "If you major in mathematics, you can switch to X anytime you want to, but not the other way around."

You can argue that with Physics as well. However, I have learned in my life, that there is a value in not having the option to "go back". Flexibility comes at a price.

[david-gpu]

> "If you major in mathematics, you can switch to X anytime you want to, but not the other way around."

I hear people say that about mathematicians, physicists and even philosophers, yet I've never come across any of them in my career. I suspect it's wishful thinking.

[throwanem]

I disagree. I've worked with a sizable number of people whose training was in mathematics or physics. I've never worked in an organization dedicated to either field; my surmise is that a high level of facility in those subjects demands an activity and agility of intellect which lends itself well to almost any complex and primarily mental pursuit.

[foldr]

Most people in most jobs are doing work that's not directly related to their degree.

[throwanem]

I've worked with a lot more math and physics grads than, say, poli sci or sports medicine grads. Not to disparage fields that aren't math or physics, and I don't have a degree in the fight in any case; just that I have noticed something of a preponderance over the years among those who do have degrees not actually in the field.

[foldr]

Right, but there are other fields of work where poli sci grads would be more common than math and physics grads.

[throwanem]

Government, I suppose, but then that's basically what they're trained for, so...

[analog31]

I majored in math, and then did a PhD in physics. My first job out of grad school involved programming the controls for factory machines. These machines involved a technology that couldn't be bought off-the-shelf, and thus required custom controls. Today, I'm an "architect" at a business that makes measurement equipment.

My perception is that it was easier to cross disciplines when I got out of school, more than a couple decades ago. Things like "embedded systems" weren't well enough defined to have an established training-to-job career path, so it was easier to break into those fields. Rejecting candidates who didn't match a template was only beginning to be automated. Today, bigger employers are looking for training that is more specific to the task at hand.

So if you're in a rapidly emerging area where workers tend to be younger, you might see fewer cross-disciplinary people. At my workplace, the people with "generalist" background who are now working in specialized areas of engineering, tend to be over 50, myself included.

[sdenton4]

I think there's a bit of perception bias here based on when people 'convert out' of mathematics. People leaving after undergrad are both the most common, and pretty unlikely to be described as 'mathematicians' outright.

There's also a relatively small number of people majoring in math compared to many of the fields the math majors switch into.

My current team of SWE's at BigCorp for a while was >50% phds; I did a math postdoc, we had another MIT math phd, and a physics, bio and EE phd off the top of my head. So I guess it depends what you're working on?

[foldr]

Indeed, what is it even supposed to mean? You can become a doctor or a lawyer or whatever just like that because you have a degree in math?

[sdenton4]

It's pretty common for math majors to go kick ass in the LSAT and become lawyers. Switching to medicine is a bit less common, I think.

[foldr]

It's common for people from lots of fields to go to law school, AFAIK. I don't see why a math degree specifically would be helpful in making that switch.

[sn9]

The claim was that a math degree is easier for making the switch than the opposite switch: e.g., an English major would likely do as well as a math major in getting a law degree, but would find it nearly impossible transitioning into mathematics without the equivalent of a second BS.

I don't think this is particularly controvertial.

[foldr]

Is it not? Where are the examples of mathematicians successfully switching to writing literary criticism?

[BeetleB]

>I hear people say that about mathematicians, physicists and even philosophers, yet I've never come across any of them in my career. I suspect it's wishful thinking.

I think it's more common among physicists.

Branching over into computer science is common.

As is economics and engineering.

I rarely see a non-math PhD as a faculty in the math department. Same with physics. However, it is not at all unusual to see a math/physics PhD as a faculty member in another department.

[phaus]

Are you a developer? I've run into at least a few math majors working in software dev/netsec.

[mathattack]

The one way door is true. I’ve seen many math majors with phds in other fields but not the other way around.

[ValentineC]

Relevant XKCD? https://xkcd.com/435/