How to tell if you would be good at Maths?

Original post by Duke Glacia

Were you interested in maths at School ?

until Year 9 I was going to become a lawyer

in Year 10 a chemist (my uncle was Head of Chemistry at a Greek University so he was a great influence to me)

in Year 12 I hated Chemistry, I begun to like Physics and by only by the end of Year 13 I started enjoying Maths

Reply 22

Original post by Duke Glacia

That's a very rare case.lol

Yeah the school wouldn't let him drop it for some unfathomable reason (despite E at AS) so he just did literally nothing. Similar to my approach to the Welsh Baccalaureate for a while until I was finally able to get rid of it. :colonhash:

Reply 23

Original post by TeeEm

until Year 9 I was going to become a lawyer

in Year 10 a chemist (my uncle was Head of Chemistry at a Greek University so he was a great influence to me)

in Year 12 I hated Chemistry, I begun to like Physics and by only by the end of Year 13 I started enjoying Maths

That's very interesting. Youre interests really varied .....
I wanted to be a wwe prowrestler when i was small but now i really dont know what to become.
This is just a genaral question but which do you think is tough. Step 3 or imo ?

Reply 24

Original post by Duke Glacia

That's very interesting. Youre interests really varied .....
I wanted to be a wwe prowrestler when i was small but now i really dont know what to become.
This is just a genaral question but which do you think is tough. Step 3 or imo ?

I never got involved with neither but most students here claim IMO is harder

Reply 25

You didn't like bmo type of questions right ?
Thats wgat i like in bpho you get to think for a while and answer(like step(

Original post by 1 8 13 20 42

Yeah the school wouldn't let him drop it for some unfathomable reason (despite E at AS) so he just did literally nothing. Similar to my approach to the Welsh Baccalaureate for a while until I was finally able to get rid of it. :colonhash:

Reply 26

Original post by Duke Glacia

You didn't like bmo type of questions right ?
Thats wgat i like in bpho you get to think for a while and answer(like step(

Maybe I've never given myself enough time to try and answer them but I still don't think I've ever even completed a BMO1 question lol. Thankfully I had an "off day" with SMC to put it lightly so didn't have to take part. To be honest I find STEP and indeed university maths so far infinitely more accessible. Funnily enough the first of the fortnightly tests we get for one module was very much SMC-like in style but I found it easy so perhaps I would have more luck with UKMT nowadays.

Reply 27

Original post by TeeEm

I never got involved with neither but most students here claim IMO is harder

By any chance was klaus roth your lecturer ?

Reply 28

I think anyone who does well on step has the flair for maths.btw What's your ambition ?

Original post by 1 8 13 20 42

Maybe I've never given myself enough time to try and answer them but I still don't think I've ever even completed a BMO1 question lol. Thankfully I had an "off day" with SMC to put it lightly so didn't have to take part. To be honest I find STEP and indeed university maths so far infinitely more accessible. Funnily enough the first of the fortnightly tests we get for one module was very much SMC-like in style but I found it easy so perhaps I would have more luck with UKMT nowadays.

Reply 29

Original post by Duke Glacia

By any chance was klaus roth your lecturer ?

I remember someone by that surname (but never my lecturer). He was an honorary reader I think.

Reply 30

Original post by TeeEm

I remember someone by that surname (but never my lecturer). He was an honorary reader I think.

He was a fields medalist from ucl.

Reply 31

Craig1998

12

Original post by defenestrated

actually yeah, my teacher said that even if you get an A* in gcse maths, you could get a U at A level
why???
what's so different?

I think this is something to do with confidence. Some of my friends didn't do as well at A-level despite coming out with great GCSEs because they are over-confident and think they will fly through the A-level Maths course, since they did the same with the GCSE course.

Reply 32

Original post by Duke Glacia

He was a fields medalist from ucl.

do not remember...
I remember a field medallist I think (after my time there) by the name of Keith Ball (prof)

Reply 33

username1560589

Original post by 1 8 13 20 42

Funnily enough the first of the fortnightly tests we get for one module was very much SMC-like in style but I found it easy so perhaps I would have more luck with UKMT nowadays.

I also found it much easier than SMC so I think it is actually easier. Basic set theory and number theory so trickier in the content but you don't need to think.

Reply 34

Original post by Duke Glacia

I think anyone who does well on step has the flair for maths.btw What's your ambition ?

Well that's a nice endorsement although I never really feel like a proper maths-person or somebody who has some kind of flair for it; more somebody who is extremely pedantic and curious and is just doing maths as one outlet for that...if that makes any sense lol. Ideally I would like to be in academia. Some bizarre part of me is interested in teaching even though I have no social skills; it hardly follows logically but I am interested in writing also (although I suppose that isn't too weird - loads of the writers on The Simpsons were mathematicians lol), and I would probably be open to any job that allowed me to use the skills and knowledge I shall hopefully obtain in a non-monotonous and engaging fashion. So the tl;dr version is I don't know. :colonhash:

Reply 35

Original post by morgan8002

I also found it much easier than SMC so I think it is actually easier. Basic set theory and number theory so trickier in the content but you don't need to think.

I guess I'm more thinking of the 1-15 questions and at a push 16-20. :tongue:

I took the not thinking part to the extreme in one question though and got it wrong; hopefully I will be more vigilant this week...but I think it should get harder as we have covered more complex content. Similar to how analysis seems to get harder every week.

Reply 36

username1560589

Original post by 1 8 13 20 42

I guess I'm more thinking of the 1-15 questions and at a push 16-20. :tongue:

I took the not thinking part to the extreme in one question though and got it wrong; hopefully I will be more vigilant this week...but I think it should get harder as we have covered more complex content. Similar to how analysis seems to get harder every week.

I did the same. For the penultimate(I think) question I read

\mathbb{N}

for all the parts instead of

\mathbb{Z}

for two of them. Luckily I had 30 min spare at the end and found the mistake.
Probably will get harder.

Reply 37

Original post by Craig1998

I think this is something to do with confidence. Some of my friends didn't do as well at A-level despite coming out with great GCSEs because they are over-confident and think they will fly through the A-level Maths course, since they did the same with the GCSE course.

So to the op you must work hard even if you are a genius like Andrew wiles. Because scores are what matters and its the only evidence you can show others including uni that you are takented in maths. You can take in competitions and try some step papers. But even for those you need practice to get used to the type of questions. dont come into a conclusion that you suck at maths. So just work hard and find out your true potential !
Andrew wiles worked day and night for six years to solve the fermats last theorum. Even genius needs to wh to show their potential.

Reply 38