Math Majors and money

maybe Finance

Don't make $$$ your goal. Life's too short. Find work you can be passionate about and throw yourself into that.

hey money man, there a lots of options availble to a math major, the problem is that most recent grads don't realizse this. I graduated w/ a math degree and taught high school for 1 year, then went on to get my PhD in math/stat. Now I'm a professor in a university business school, but I also worked in wireless telecom after my PhD.

Check out some of the web sites out there like the american mathematical association or the american statastical association, they have tons of info on career options.

And, be very careful before you make the plunge into being a high school teacher, it's not all it's made out to be and unfortunately it's a thankless job in this country. The pay sucks and after a few years you'll be stuck and won't be able to do anyting else. Getting out of high school teaching quick was one of the smartest things I've ever done. When you're young you don't want to think that you're doing things for money, but I don't care what anyone says, money is very important. Also, as you get older, money becomes more important when it comes to chicks. In college chicks dont' care if a guy has money, but as soon as they hit their mid to late twenties, that all changes, for most at least.

RE being an actuary, yeah, there are a lot of tests. I didn't go into that for that same reason ... however, when I hear about high much money some actuaries make, I am pissed off that I didn't give it more thought. You can always study and pass the test.

Explore all your options carefully.

OUT

Actuary

One of the least stressful high paying job out there.

Traders on Wall Street can easily make six figures, and the good ones make upwards of seven. Investment bankers also roll in dough, but you have to have more of a 'pedigree' to get into such a position -- i.e. Ivy League school or equivalent. In either case, the math degree would land you in good stead for one of these jobs.

Actuaries do make very decent money--particularly for someone right out of college. The upside isn't as high as an investment banker, but the job is definitely less stressful and shorter hours. The test process, however, is long and grueling. It takes as long as getting a Phd, but you're also working full time (which means having money, but having no free time during certain times of the year).

The most important thing, however, is to like what you're doing. Actuaries are often rated very highly as a job profession, and most actuaries I know are very satisfied with their choice once they've finished the exams.

BBT wrote:

The test process, however, is long and grueling. It takes as long as getting a Phd,

Becoming an actuary takes 4-6 years?

You majored in Math? Wow, good for you. I hated it with great passion. My math SAT was 420, which probably underscored it.

Someplace here someone started a thread about math and why anyone would major in it or choose a career in it. Pretty long thread as I recall.

Typical college student...

If you are going to be successful, you should plan on working more hours than you are scheduled for anyway.

Successful people put in the extra work.

Not all finance job require extra long hours. Look for a smaller firm on the buy side -- small family offices or investment firms catering to high net worth individuals are a good start -- and don't restrict yourself to one location. Scatter your resume all across the country. Start digging... the opportunities are out there.

luv2run wrote:

Typical college student...

If you are going to be successful, you should plan on working more hours than you are scheduled for anyway.

Successful people put in the extra work.

When I graduate, I will have attended 4 colleges/universities in my 4 year career to get this degree. I am somewhat burnt from school and never really enjoyed college the way that many got the chance to. I am far from a "typical college student."

Do you have any idea how much hard work and luck I had to have to be able to graduate in 4 years going to 4 different schools?

On another note, I MIGHT be willing to persue the Actuary road if I could get some insights from some people on many hours and years are required to acheive the "elite" (whatever) status which comes after completion of these tests.

Also, Actuaries only work 40 hours/wk?

Most are "happy" with their "low stress careers"? (As mentioned above)

How many tests are there and what kind of money could one make just coming from college? Passing one test? Two?

Finally, what type of "luck" would I have to have to be a Business Investor? (also alluded to in a post above) Do people enjoy this job?

Are these jobs conducive to running, and more importantly, are these jobs conducive to having a family?

Sorry, a lot of questions.

Fire at will if you have answers.

Thanks

I was a math major. It helped me out a lot.

On my first job, the boss says to me, "Hey, looks like you're good at math. That means you can be on the front register instead of the grill. If you get bored, count the french fries in the cooker."

After 12 years, I almost made employee of the month twice. With luck, I might make assistant manager though they are considering hiring an Indian immigrant who will work for half the pay.

I'm keeping the faith, and I know I'm going places.

Out.

Ok, look. Just because you majored in math doesn't mean you have to have a job that uses it. But let's talk short term. Any job you apply to that has to do with money, and you'll be a strong candidate immediately. You can work in banking, business, on wall street, whatever. If you have good grades, a math major tells people that you're smart, bright, hardworking, or whatever you want to call it; it's not an easy thing to do.

My father is an actuary, and he's told me about it a bit. Basically, you start off as an intern, and you do a lot of work in the beginning. This is true of most high-paying jobs. It may be hard to find time for running (this is a running website, after all) in the beginning; planning on increasing your mileage might not be a great idea. While you're an intern, you study and (hopefully) pass the tests. Some companies help you out. So you're doing work during the day, and studying (or in my father's case, watching TV while his roommate studied) in the evenings. Some people think the tests are hard, some people think the tests are easy. My father passed them in 3 years, and other people take longer; his roommate took 5 or 6 years. After that, what happens to you can vary; different actuaries do different things. But I can tell you that my father has worked 9-5 since before I was born, and he plays a lot of solitare on the computer at work :)

Thanks for ALL of the helpful replies, guys and gals.

I am not totally sure which way I want to go yet, but I'm keeping an open mind.

I'm bumping it up for the Monday work crowd for more opinions and ideas.

Thanks again

econ, but also applies to math majors

http://www.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read.php?board=1&id=834283&thread=834256

math majors

http://www.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read.php?board=1&id=148497&thread=148354

good luck

two more for ya

http://www.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read.php?board=1&id=835358&thread=835358

http://www.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read.php?board=1&id=695439&thread=695408

Being an actuary is NOT a 40 hr a week job. Maybe some actuaries--but most, particularly in consulting companies work closer to 50...

And yes, becoming an actuary (FSA) does take at least 5 years. As it stands now, the exams are only offered once every 6 months and there are 8 exams total. The pass rates for each exam are less than 50%. I know a few people who had 3 or 4 exams before graduating from college and were able to become an FSA by age 25. If you're starting from the first exam after college, expect it to take as long as getting a Ph.D.

Sure, it looks good on a "top career" list, but don't let that fool you into thinking its a cakewalk of a job.

I'm currently a actuarial science major, just finished my junior year, hopefully I can shed some light on the subject. After graduating from college, with one or two exams passed, you can expect to make ~$50,000. The exams aren't too hard, I've taken the first two hopefully I'll pass. If you put in a reasonable amount of study time you should pass, employers often give you paid time to study as well. Expect to work about 40-45 hours a week, although that is to be expected if you want to succeed in any job.

two successful math majors:

Jeff Immelt - we all know who he is and w/ stock options makes about $30MM/yr. BA in mathematics

Leo Mullin - ex-CEO of Delta Airlines, on the BOD for a few global co.'s and now a senior advisor to Goldman Sachs. Undergrad degree in mathematics