Thinking about doing Maths - what can I do to help my application?

Hi,

I'm thinking of applying for either Maths and Statistics or Maths and Computer Science but I'm not sure what I can do for my personal statement etc - medical applicants and stuff are doing work experience and voluntary stuff but I don't know what I can be doing...

Does work experience/voluntary work help even for maths? What else can I be doing?

Thanks

Books are really good, sort of reading around the system, its history and higher level topics. These gives you an insight into what Mathematics is, where it has come from and where it is now. But most of all it shows an interest!

have a look around , like IMO paper and BMO paper , it will help you !

The University usually has a list of books you can be reading. I should imagine reading one or two of them would be a good minimum amount of further reading to do.

Otherwise, I'm not really sure. You can't exactly get work experience in Maths apart from helping to teach lower years Mathematics.

Here's a thread you might like, http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1693874

Oh also, it would probably be a good idea to enter Maths Challenges such as the Maths Olympiad, http://www.bmoc.maths.org/

Read around the subject. Maybe a bit of work experience would be useful (you can apply most jobs to teaching analytical skills and problem solving if you try hard enough). Other than that, just the general things for a personal statement: show ambition to continue in the subject after the degree (even if you actually don't want to) and show a real passion for the subject. Perhaps do some tutoring for a local school for GCSE maths or lower.

have a look around , like IMO paper and BMO paper , it will help you !

As a fellow Maths fanatic I would suggest 'The story of Maths'. It teaches you the history of it and where some of the most basic principles come from. But this wont really help your application much, alot of people will watch this who are interested in Maths.

Olympiads would be one of the biggest things that can set you aside from the rest or any other national tests that challenge the mathematically gifted.

I'm thinking of creating android apps and small games/puzzles, I might then create a website and upload them all on to that, so the University can view them. Thats if I choose to study Computer Science at University and not Physics...

Cool, can anyone just enter these olympiads?

You may have to get a certain grade in the subject (A/A*). You might even need to compete against others in your school first and beat them, then you can compete nationally.

That isn't how it works at all.

Okay, how does it work then?

*I haven't started A-Levels yet.

Thanks for the reply,

Any recommendations?

That isn't how it works at all.

That's the UKMT Individual Maths Challenge. I did that last year.

I was on about The Olympiad that is set by Oxford University.

What are you on about???????

(1) Read the bloody link I gave you, it details the Olympiad half way down ... you get to do the Olympiad first round depending on Success of UK Maths Challenge (** at least this is the most common way)
(2) The Olympiad is not set by Oxford University ... in fact it has as much to do with Bolton Poly as it does Oxford Uni ......
(3) goto(1)

Yeah sorry I must have been on about something different, there was something that was set by Oxford for sure!

I got a silver in the Intermediate UKMT challenge but haven't recieved a certificate yet (just finished GCSE's)...Will I get it on results day or not? I'm not too bothered because Silver sucks but it would still be nice >.<.