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Is it useful to have a Math degree to become a programmer and why?

I am a student in college pursuing a bachelors in Math and maybe even study further to get a masters in Math. I have many friends who suggested I do a computer science degree. However I am interested in learning more math and can study more coding outside of school. So I want to know if having a math degree with coding experience and be very beneficial. #math #computer-science

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Bonnie’s Answer

Although you don’t necessarily need a math degree, math skills will be an advantage when coding, algorithms and building business cases for projects which require cost/benefit analysis.
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shweta’s Answer

+You need Logical and Critical thinking during programming so your expertise in maths , will be really helpful .Coding need problem solving skills so your Mathematics background will be a great add on .
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Leonardo’s Answer

Yes coding is a major way of delivering mathematics to the "real world". With a firm grasp of math you can implement complex algorithms.

Another way is through research design and implementation.

Leonardo recommends the following next steps:

Look at deep learning
Look at machine learning
Look at data science
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Adelle’s Answer

Yes! When I was in college, and I knew many people who had a math major but minored in Computer Science. I was the other way around - A BS in Computer Science with a minor in math. Honestly, the math really helped with critical thinking, which is something that you need when programming.
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Igal’s Answer

I've worked with various software engineering teams over the years, and have seen different amounts of math used depending on a team's focus. Teams working on front-end (web) applications tend to use less. Those working on back-end (server-side) technologies used more. Those working in artificial intelligence, cryptography, or data analysis applications definitely used more math.

The most complex problems I've seen being worked on in those fields required applied-math knowledge, and in some cases quite a bit of it. I think you can rest assured that combining math and programming will end up being useful if you are

Igal recommends the following next steps:

Figure out what kind of math + programming career you're interested in, and read about the skills needed.
Talk to a person doing what you'd like to be doing and ask them what kind of math and programming they use in their work. You can find a forum online to post your question if you don't have direct access to a person like that.
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Dinesh’s Answer

As Ashutosh mentioned Mathematics is required for most of the programming. Going forward emerging technology required more and more logical programing, such as Data Science required

  • Programming Languages: Python, R, SAS
  • Machine Learning Tools
  • Data Visualization and Reporting
  • Risk Analysis
  • Statistics and Math
  • Effective Communication
  • Software Engineering Skills
  • Data Mining, Cleaning and Munging
  • Big Data Platforms
  • Cloud Tools

So all are related to Mathematics.
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Ashutosh’s Answer

Definitely!! Afterall, Programming is all about having logical constructs and problem solving ability. Mathematics provides us the aid to solve all these problems through logic building. But, It isn't necessary to have high-level mathematical skills. If you've acquired these skills, it would be an added advantage.
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Teng’s Answer

Hi Farhan,

I have different opinion on your question. Overall, I don't think it's really useful to have a Math degree. Let me explain in details:

  1. I had been doing Math a lot. When I was in school, I won several titles of Math competitions. And now, I'm a software engineer. In my opinion, most of the Math in programming is not that hard(unless you want to be an algorithm software engineer). You can get the Math knowledge from any engineering majors. And, the most relevant major is Computer Science.
  2. According to my experience, people from all backgrounds are doing software engineering. I have friends from Electrical Engineering, Math, Biology, Chemistry, Business and even Arts background. They are all good software engineers. It doesn't stop you by your degree if you want to do software.
  3. There is some difference between majors when you apply for a software related job as a new grad. If you have a Computer Science degree it's easier for you. While, if you have a Math degree, it doesn't make any difference with a Chemistry or Biology degree.
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Kai’s Answer

Hi Farhan,

I have a math major and I have three work experience related to data science and engineering. From my own experience, I would say math definitely helps when programming especially when it comes to algorithms. One example is Math gave me ideas and methods of approximation when there is a system limitation. But since you want to become a programmer, it still depends on which area you are interested in. For example, machine learning, analysis or statistics, then Math is important and coding is needed, if software or app development, then Computer Science is important and math is good to know.

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