Career opportunities during and after your Maths degree

As someone who walked into their open days with no idea what they wanted to do, the versatility of a maths degree was so valuable to me. When I say I had no idea what degree I wanted to do initially...I had no idea. I mean, I was considering Spanish, Law, History – and of course Maths!

What really drew me towards a Maths degree was the amount of amazing career opportunities – it’s honestly probably one of the degrees which keeps the most doors open in terms of careers, and there are amazing opportunities out there for Maths students to see which career best suits their skills!

Whilst studying for your degree, (which, I’ll be completely honest and say it is a lot of hours of work on its own!) there are loads of opportunities to really find the career path for you! There are schemes such as:

• Summer internships - Where you work for a company, typically in the summer between your 2nd and 3rd year, in an area which they delegate you and work on real projects.
• Placement years - When studying Maths at Birmingham, there is the opportunity to do a whole year working for a company or organisation on projects. This makes your degree a year longer but provides invaluable experience. These are super popular since there is the potential to get an offer for a graduate job offer if you’re successful in your role!
• Tutoring - Another way Maths students gain experience during studies is through tutoring. It’s something I’ve really enjoyed and definitely built my skills in explaining concepts and proved that although I would love to do something similar part time, I think a career as a Maths teacher could be too full on for me!
• Research project - Finally, at university there is the paid opportunity to work with your lecturers on research projects of their choosing for several weeks in the summer, so if a career in academia interests you this is definitely a great option.

As I’ve already touched upon, a Maths degree is so employable. Employers seek not only the actual mathematical theory side of it but also the general skills the degree gives you in terms of rigour, problem solving and communication. 

Although most people potentially think of careers in finance after a Maths degree, it is certainly not limited to this! Graduates take on roles in various areas, such as:

• Logistics/Supply Chain
• Transport planning
• Software development
• Statistics
• Aerospace
• Data analytics
• Actuary
• Public Policy
• Teaching
• Academia

You may notice that some of the above don’t explicitly require a Maths degree! And that’s exactly the point – for me, I think a degree is what you make of it.

Take advantage of as many career opportunities whilst studying - especially since the university promote a lot of it! Take advantage of networking opportunities, utilising LinkedIn, and having access to so many wonderful opportunities. Do this and you will not only be equipped with incredible skills and actual work experience, but also with unique connections which could even lead to a graduate job.