by
Imed Bouchrika
Math is applicable to almost every industry today, be it in science and technology, business, retail, or health care (Robinson, 2021). Moreover, the demand for math experts has increased massively. The Mathematical Association of America states that math jobs, such as mathematicians, actuaries, and statisticians, are becoming more appealing due to their income range, job outlook, and work satisfaction (Become, 2019).
Not everyone enjoys working with numbers and studying difficult problems. But, if you do, a math career may be for you. Discover the best math career path to take, considering job prospects, mathematician salary potential, and degree options in this article.
Math professionals assess risk or solve problems with the help of math, statistics, and financial theories. They exemplify skills in mathematical, problem-solving, and communication.
For those who will take the time to obtain a degree, the math career path ensures a broad range of professional opportunities.
According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, there will be a 27% growth in math careers between 2019 and 2029. One of the reasons that could explain such a high demand for math workers is that many fields are now data-reliant (Robinson, 2021).
Below is a table showing the top jobs that use math, alongside their median annual income and academic requirements.
| Job | Median Annual Income | Academic Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| Accountant | $52,000 | Bachelor's Degree in Accounting |
| Architect | $75,000 | Bachelor's Degree in Architecture |
| Research Analyst | $62,000 | Bachelor's Degree in a Mathematics Major |
| Mechanical Engineer | $72,000 | At least a Bachelor's Degree in Engineering, but usually, a master's degree, too |
| Actuary | $84,000 | Bachelor's Degree in Mathematics or a relevant field |
Math professionals are in demand for their skills to comprehend, make sense of, and transform complex problems and data sets into solutions. Relying purely on logic, reasoning, and analysis, math professionals help many businesses and organizations achieve growth and success.
Essential Skills for Math Professionals
General Skills for Math Professionals
The first thing that you need to do to achieve your career goals in math is to earn a degree. When doing so, consider costs, requirements, and entire length.
Accounting Supervisor
Accounting supervisors handle a small team of accountants. They may also handle customer service roles for small companies. They study financial information, confirm their accuracy, and prepare reports. They also manage the documentation of their team’s tasks to meet regulatory needs.
Median salary: $65,770
Bookkeeping, Accounting, or Auditing Clerk
Clerks are designated in payroll or accounting departments for ledger management, check deposits, and accounts processing. Some clerks also handle bookkeeping for CPAs or auditors.
Median salary: $41,230
Actuary
Actuaries conduct thorough data analysis to aid insurance firms in minimizing risk exposure. They do this through data gathering, synthesis, analysis, and application.
Median salary: $91,180
Software Engineer
Software engineers team up with programmers, designers, and coders to make various software types into useful programs for the end-user. They are responsible for plotting tasks, writing code, testing software, and recording test results.
Median salary: $85,010
Source: College Factual
While it is not a guarantee to land you a math job, a certificate demonstrates how experienced and trained you are. However, certification is usually optional.
Holding advanced degrees, such as a master’s or doctorate degree, can qualify you for higher math positions and earning power. These degrees also continue to make you relevant in the field as tools, techniques, and theories in math change over time. (Robinson, 2021).
Senior Software Engineer
Senior software engineers use both their skills in paying attention to details and multitasking with expertise in web coding and applied math. They manage teams that develop, alter, and debug software for client applications.
Median salary: $117,370
Senior Data Analyst
Senior data analysts usually work for marketing or finance industries. They manage teams that gather, arrange, and study data. They also report their findings to executives.
Median salary: $81,250
Professor
Professors teach courses, counsel students, design curricula, and conduct research. They may also be tasked to offer consulting services, handle a team of researchers, and make presentations in public.
Undoubtedly, both the mathematics classroom and the mathematics teacher education are changing because of the internet. This notion is described in Johann Engelbrecht et al.’s 2020 article “Transformation of the mathematics classroom with the internet,” which can be seen on Springer. “The development of new digital technologies provides new opportunities to mathematics educators, and new ways of thinking about how the teaching and the design of teaching-learning environments evolve, generating new practices and establishing goals, which we did not think about several years ago.” It was pointed out that, “in the educational field, tools facilitating the performance of a task, thereby extending the power of human capabilities and amplifying the power of the mind. Although these tools impose constraints on learning activities, they also generate new opportunities for learning. These opportunities for learning are linked to new ways of looking for information, which shape students’ mathematical experiences.”
Median salary: $88,120
Chief Technology Officer
Chief technology officers make technology-related policies for their businesses or organizations. They also handle teams within their IT departments.
Median salary: $161,180
Obtained voluntarily, certifications can help you actualize your career development plan in math (Become, 2019). The certified analytics professional and IBM data science professional are two highly recommended professional certifications in the math field.
There is more to a math career than just accounting, statistics, teaching, and research. Lucrative math jobs are everywhere, especially if you are highly skilled in calculation, logic, and problem-solving. Criminal justice, meteorology, and even liberal arts fields also now employ math majors (Robinson, 2021).
Animator
Art goes together with math in animation. Here, trigonometry aids in rotating and moving characters, alongside algebra that makes the special effects of images.
Meteorologist
Meteorologists keep an eye on and predict the weather. They must be able to make easily readable graphs, reports, and presentations out of complex data. Hence, strong math skills, knowledge in atmospheric science, and communication skills are needed in weather forecasting.
Source: Become, 2019
Math is integral to any endeavor related to science, engineering, and analytics. Without it, suspension bridges would not be built, the moon landing would not have happened, high towers would not be constructed, and more. All groundbreaking events in the history of mankind occurred with the power of math.
Presently, it is solving our biggest and most pressing problems. So, if math is where your expertise lies, the most reasonable thing to do right now is to grab the opportunity to learn everything you can about it (Audsley, n.d.).
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