How much maths is needed for a commerce degree? (1 Viewer)

[willbman]

g'day,
i have to make a decision, and was wondering if u really need 2u maths to do commerce/business at uni? seeing as these days maths is seen mostly as assumed knowledge, is it really that important that 2u maths knowledge is taken into a degree in this field?
thanks.

 

[Sarah168]

this is just from my experience at usyd

microeconomics (pre req unit) = abit of linear algebra, teeny bit of calculus and i mean tiny cos it was just simple differentiation of basic equations, abit of basic algebra in re arranging equations and substitution

macroeconomics = err addition and subtraction and basic algebra. I tiny logarithm came up in the equation of money exchange but it's negligable. Im just mentioning it cos it's there

econometrics A = fair bit of maths. Series and sequences for financial maths (the geometric sequence and loan repayments, sigma notation), bit more algebra, natural logs in solving some financial maths stuff, subsitution method...quite basic. I might be forgetting something..

accounting 1A= hmmm can u add and subtract? off you got then! hardly anything. tiny bit of algebra might creep in but it's really hardly needs mentioning cos its nothing

ok, sounds like nothing so far but 2nd and 3rd year units (esp, metrics, finance etc) will have LOTS of maths and they often warn u that knowledge of maths at 3u will be highly recommended. So the idea is that 1st yr subjects won't require it but some subjects/majors really need you to be able to have knowledge of and grasp mathematical ideas quickly..

 

[sarevok]

mate it really depends on what you want to major in, do a major in human resources and you won't be seeing much maths obviously, but if you're planning on a major in ecmt or finance then you'll need significant maths knowledge. in terms of compulsory units though, you should be able to get by without having done 2-unit.

 

[willbman]

k thanks for the advice.

 

[seremify007]

Any advice on how much maths is in Finance? Like what kind of maths do you do? I heard there's matrices (I never learnt them in school)~

 

[sikeveo]

Matrices aren't in any maths course in nsw

 

[Shuter]

Matrices aren't in any maths course in nsw

We got taught them in like 9/10 because our teacher was a nut.

 

[§eraphim]

any srs commerce degree with stats will have linear algebra (operations over matrices). eg covariance matrices in stats.

u cant avoid maths in commerce. any kind of srs modelling (eg. data analysis using stats) requires maths for sophisticated analysis (no box and whisker plots).

 

[:: ck ::]

i dun think its that big of a problem... theres some stuff in macro/micro requiring very basic algebra...

unless of course.. ur considerin to major actuarial.. then ur prety screwed if u never done maths in high school

 

[seremify007]

ryan, what's Applied Finance like if I may ask? I'm planning to do some form of Finance at uni (hopefully UNSW?) but I'm pretty sure there'll be similarities between unis.

 

[RIZAL]

ryan, what's Applied Finance like if I may ask? I'm planning to do some form of Finance at uni (hopefully UNSW?) but I'm pretty sure there'll be similarities between unis.

it's a nice course.... you'll be looking at the relationship between risk and return, arbitrage (how to make riskless money), security pricing, project analysis, trading strategies, hedging methods etc etc....I like it because it actually changes the way you think in day to day life (especially the risk/return stuff).

I'm sure UNSW is very good for Finance.

 

[seremify007]

It seems like something useful IMO.

 

[:: ck ::]

ryan, what's Applied Finance like if I may ask? I'm planning to do some form of Finance at uni (hopefully UNSW?) but I'm pretty sure there'll be similarities between unis.

haha, i dont even start my applied finance bit until 3rd year i dont think... so i don't really know yet

if ur into finance, id recommend unsw, its way better.

 

[santaslayer]

u need maths in most majors:

marketimg
eco
finance
accounting
logistics


others for no maths:

management
HR
international business


stuff like that.

 

[scarecrow_of_oz]

i'm doing commerce-marketing and didn't do hsc maths - just picked math123 (catchup maths subject) in first year - i don't really feel it was necessary - yeah there's mathy stuff in economics and stats but they give u new equations to learn and tell u how to do them... so it really wasn't a big deal - in fact i don't think it was even necessary for me to do 123 for marketing but that might be because i'm also doing combined law so i don't have to do econometrics which i think the straight marketing degree people do

 

[seremify007]

Aren't economic equations really easy to remember?

 

[scarecrow_of_oz]

yeah not too bad - and they've got their own equations anyway which u have to learn - and if they do use techniques from yr 12 maths they do tend to explain them anyway

 

[sassy_saint86]

I did no maths in sr high school and im doing a business degree. I have coped fine so far, so in my personal experience- no. There are bridging courses avaliable tho

I totally agree! I only did maths up until the end of year 10 and I'm undertaking a bachelor of business and so far I haven't really struggled! Generally, there are mathematical concepts throughout many courses, but most of these concepts are only basic! Good Luck!

 

[§eraphim]

i think most srs economics/finance courses demand a bit of maths.