First-Year's FAQ

Questions

• Who is the department's advisor for First-Year students? (answer)

• Do I have to take any mathematics at Dartmouth? (answer)

• Which placement examination should I take during orientation week? (answer)

• If I am placed into an advanced placement mathematics course, do I get credit for those courses I skip over? (answer)

• Is it possible to transfer credit to Dartmouth for courses taken at another college before matriculation? (answer)

• Which courses for first-year students involve the computer? (answer)

• If I only want to take one Mathematics course at Dartmouth, what should I take? (answer)

• Can I get advanced placement and credit for more than just one-variable calculus courses? (answer)

• I have advanced placement credit and have been placed into math 11 or math 12. Is there any alternative to taking calculus at this time? (answer)

Answers

• Who is the department's advisor for First-Year students?

  Answer: Professor Scott Pauls is the advisor to First-Year students regarding matters of mathematical placement and credit. After consulting these web resources, you should direct any further questions to him at scott.pauls@dartmouth.edu.

• Do I have to take any mathematics at Dartmouth?

  Answer: No. Surprised?! Well, you didn't ask whether we thought you should take any mathematics. Anyway, College degree requirements include one course in quantitative and deductive science (QDS), and one course in technology or applied science (TAS). All math courses count towards one of these requirements. The majority of courses count towards the QDS requirement; Math 16, 30, 33, 36, and 53 count towards the TAS requirement. Most students take at least one math course, and Math 3, 5, 6, 10 and 16 are highly recommended for all students not going on in mathematics or in a science. Math 10 and 16 are especially useful for those planning a business career.

• Which placement examination should I take during orientation week?

  Answer: There are two types of placement exams which are given: Calculus advanced placement exams (M3 & M8), and the Math 1 Placement Exam. The calculus advanced placement exams are designed for students who have had some calculus in high school, and either did not take an ETS exam to obtain AP credit, or who did take an exam, but wish to try for more credit than they would receive based upon their scores. To check what credit or placement you will automatically recieve, look at our related web page on AP/IB/A-Level Information.

  The Math 1 placement exam is given by invitation only to those students who might benefit from an integrated calculus and algebra sequence offered at a somewhat slower pace than Math 3.

• If I am placed into an advanced placement mathematics course, do I get credit for those courses I skip over?

  Answer: Often, but not necessarily. It depends upon whether you are given credit or an exemption for a particular course. Full details are available at our web page on AP/IB/A-Level Information.

• Is it possible to transfer credit to Dartmouth for courses taken at another college before matriculation?

  Answer: No. However, it is possible to receive credit for knowledge previously acquired by taking a final examination from the equivalent Dartmouth course during the fall term of your first year. Make special arrangements for this with the Department's Advisor to First-Year Students Professor Scott Pauls. These arrangements must be made before the last day of classes in the fall term of a student's first year.

  It is possible, although sometimes not advised, to start at a more advanced level than Math 13 without taking such a special final exam, but in this case you do not receive credit for the courses which you skipped. In any event, you should discuss this thoroughly with the advisor to first year students.

• Which courses for first-year students involve the computer?

  Answer: Practically all of them involve the computer to some extent. The computer is a far more powerful and useful tool than a graphing calculator, and many courses give you an introduction to ways in which you can use the computer to enhance your understanding of your courses. No prior knowledge of the computer is assumed in these courses.

• If I only want to take one Mathematics course at Dartmouth, what should I take?

  Answer: Good question! There really are a number of options. If you are going on in the sciences, almost surely a calculus course will do you some good. For those interested in the social sciences and humanities, calculus may not be the best option.

  • Each year there are one or more offerings of Math 5. The topics in math 5 change from term to term (and year to year). Some of the standard math 5 courses are:
    • Chance: Chance is a course which intertwines basic statistics with its use in current journals and newspapers. The types of questions which are considered concern issues like the validity of AIDS testing, or how statistics is used to support or oppose arguments regarding the effectiveness of the death penalty. Students often examine new studies for credibility: In a study of 500 users of Viagra, researchers noticed a 20% increase in cases of lung cancer. Researchers are puzzled....
    • A Matter of Time: Everybody knows about time. Our everyday language bears witness to the centrality of time with scores of words and expressions that refer to it as a measure, a frame of reference, or an ordering factor for our lives, feelings, dreams, and histories. For the Aztecs time was a series of 52-year cycles. At the end of each cycle, the sun would set and for three days and nights the universe was up for grabs before the beginning of a new cycle. The Bible, on the other hand, inscribed another concept of time, linear and chronological in the seven days of creation and the detailed chronicles of endless genealogies. Playing with time has been a favorite game in works of high culture--from the Greek sophists to cubism--and in popular culture--from H.G. Wells to Monty Python. And time is at the center of one of the most revolutionary scientific theories of all time: Einstein's Theory of Relativity. In this course we will use mathematics, literature, and the arts to travel through history, to explore and understand Time as a key concept and reality in the development of Western culture and in our own twentieth century view of ourselves and of the world.
    • Exploring Mathematics: In the fall term of 2005, exploring mathematics is 3D Animation and the Math Behind It
    • Pattern: This course will focus on the interplay between the art of designing repeat patterns and the mathematics of analyzing those patterns in terms of their symmetries. The exercises the students will do in the class emphasize discovery through cooperative and individual work. This class is 50% a studio art class and, therefore, requires the production of designs in print media and paint. Sufficient time and instruction is provided for students to acquire the necessary skills in this area. No previous art classes are required.

  • Math 6 covers topics in logic, probability, combinatorics, matrix algebra, and computing.

  • Math 10 covers basic statistics.

• Can I get advanced placement and credit for more than just one-variable calculus courses?

  Answer: Yes. it is possible to receive credit for knowledge previously acquired by taking a final examination from the equivalent Dartmouth course during the fall term of your first year. Make special arrangements for this with the Department's Advisor to First-Year Students Professor Scott Pauls. Placement and credit exams must be completed before the last day of classes in the fall term of a student's first year.

• I have advanced placement credit and have been placed into math 11 or math 12. Is there any alternative to taking calculus at this time?

  Answer: Yes! If you are interested in mathematics beyind calculus, you can take math 17, Introduction to Mathematics Beyond Calculus. The subject matter of math 17 changes every year and is meant to give students experience with higher level mathematics that they might not otherwise see until later in their undrgraduate careers.