maths and languages degree advice

My degree is in Engineering with a minor in German. I'd say go for it. My German has stood me in very good stead. In the last 2 decades I've lived in Germany for 7 years.

The important thing the check from my perspective is that the two halves are integrated. You need to know how to participate in a professional capacity in the language. Just studying the literature etc. won't cut it. The best part of my degree course was that we studied a module or two each semester in our foreign language (you could do either French or German). This made a huge difference to our fluency and how we interacted in the language.

Have you actually looked at contemporary maths degrees? Have you seen how many third year modules (deliberately) have only core first year modules as prerequisites so all students have plenty of choices?

You may note that I carefully started my post with "back in my day" but I also had a quick look at a couple of websites to make sure that I wasn't totally off the mark. The lists that I looked at clearly showed that modules had prerequisites. However, I must admit that I didn't look in minute detail because (a) it's someone else's DC, not mine and (b) said DC can do their own research!

I've been telling friends about this link, and you may find it useful too...

russellgroup.ac.uk/for-students/school-and-college-in-the-uk/subject-choices-at-school-and-college/

Maths is a linear subject. Back in my day, subjects you could take in third year were dependent on what you had already done in second year.

Have you actually looked at contemporary maths degrees? Have you seen how many third year modules (deliberately) have only core first year modules as prerequisites so all students have plenty of choices? Have you seen that most maths degrees offer the option to do a couple of non-maths modules in the third year, chosen from a very broad list?

For the stereotyping thing: 40,000 students study maths degrees in the UK. Do you really think they all have a common character? That those who want to be pure mathematicians are absolutely identical in character to those who plan to work in the City or as management consultants?

The vast majority of maths students are at university to get a good degree and a good job. Like most other students, lots of them spend too much clubbing and drinking, and not enough time studying. I would suggest actually attending open days and talking to current maths undergraduates; you'll find plenty of extroverts/sporty people/musical people along with quieter people. (And of course there are plenty of introvert/extrovert sporty musical people too, none of these categories is mutually exclusive.)

Maths won't let your dd down, if she enjoys it. In my day to do duel honors with a mfl meant it was easier to get on a course. Eg law at LSE was hard to get onto, but law with MFL was easier, to get onto. Good luck to her. Degree should be what she likes.

Potentially it's a good degree but she should keep an open mind until she's started A Level Maths proper and seen how she gets on with that - she might be wowed by the increased level of complexity and decide "I want to do this and only this" or she might struggle and decide that she's really not maths degree material. Both are plausible possibilities and completely fine outcomes as long as she's not irrevocably set her heart on a maths/French degree combo at age 15.

Are people only supposed to share real life experiences as long as they don't fit someone else's stereotype.
Bloody hell, can someone add that to a formal list of MN rules.
Report my post as offensive to people who haven't had the same real life experiences. Go on, I dare ya'.

It's actually quite fun smashing stereotypes. I always say "my insides don't match my outsides" which means that I am blonde, (was once!) rather pretty, spent my university years playing loads of sports and wearing tiny skirts....... And absolutely love maths!

I know quite a few people with Maths and a language.

Please can we not have the inane stereotypical drivel ragged? Mathematicians at least spend their time solving interesting/hard problems and can contribute something useful to society. Unlike twats with pointless degrees in theology, media studies, psychology, golf course management, art history, business studies (there's a nice quote by Alan Sugar on that), communications, theatre arts, fashion design, sociology, liberal arts, hospitality and all the other pointless soft crap. Go watch some of Marcus du Sautoy's work on maths communication. I dated a few English, Classics and Oriental Studies graduates and found them all to woolly-minded to put up with, by the way. No grasp of cause and effect - some of them were so whacko they even believed in homeopathy. Introvert math-smart is way better than extrovert stupid.

I work with mathematicians & have dated & socialised with them over yrs.

As a group they're more introverted than avg. Which is fine. Just suggesting consider the common character of other likely students on the course.

senua - you are right about the dependencies in maths but bear in mind that the people who design the programmes are well aware of it! On the UCL Maths with MFL course the compulsory maths courses in years 1 and 2 are set so as to keep as many options open as possible for later, rather than cutting off routes. A couple of applications courses are replaced by languages modules, keeping core material on which later material is dependent within the syllabus. It's something worth checking though, as I only known about this uni.

I did French and Management at university (graduating 4 years ago) and absolutely loved it. About half of those doing French were doing it as Joint Honours with another subject, so it is very common to combine subjects.

My BFF did French and Maths at Birmingham and now works in an awesome job for one of the top UK companies, worldwide brand name etc and is loving it.

My year abroad was the best year of my life (met 4 best friends and now DH). Compared to friends who had not done a year abroad, I felt much more equipped for the real world after graduating.

I'm now working for an international company abroad, in my fourth country in six years.

Great combination. DH did something similar. He is trilingual and has had a brilliant career. His languages mixed with maths/business have been a huge asset. MFLs are obviously an in-depth study of that language's literature so it's not just a case of great at maths, speaks a foreign language. The creativity and ability to analyse acquired in any literature degree has limitless possibilities, imo.

I would definitely recommend studying something you really enjoy though. As others have said, it's not just about your career. My own degree on the outside is not related with what I do professionally. I agree with other posters as well who said UCL and Imperial have some very interesting courses.

Maths is a linear subject. Back in my day, subjects you could take in third year were dependent on what you had already done in second year. Compare and contrast to my DCs' humanities degrees where it seems that pretty much every module is a stand-alone.
So if she only has half the topics to choose from in the first place (because the other half is the language) will this send her down a very narrow track with limited room for manoeuvrability if she finds that she doesn't like a topic after all? She needs to think long in advance about the implications of choices.

A Maths/languages combination sounds great. The year abroad is the best bit - I wouldn't have missed mine, and indeed, went back for another year to do a Masters! Even if you never use the language for work and I think most employers see fluency in a language as a plus, not a minus, it's an experience not to be missed.

Another who thinks maths with a language is a great combination.

I was told at the weekend of a graduate job that originally had 32,000 applicants. Apparently fluency in a 2nd language was one of the criteria they used to make swathing cuts.

Of course, not all are that ridiculous, but a year spent in another country to gain fluency in a language has got to be a plus on ANY job application - from accountant or buisness leader, to lorry driver, tbh.

UCL has a great Maths and MFL degree as do a few other unis. It has some very good students who are very much in demand for jobs at serious places. Most universities offer non-degree language courses for people doing a single subject degree as well, so there is a choice to be made between full joint honours and attending language courses outside a single honours degree.

Maths at Uni is rather different from A level - some people love the extra depth and rigour and others just do not like it. It's worth doing your homework and maybe attending some taster days to see what it's about. I did it and loved it. It's quite common at Cambridge for people to change subject at the end of the first year, maybe to Physics, or to softer stuff if they find it's not for them. It's not a reason to not do a maths degree, but finding out what uni maths is about is really quite important.

my dd did economics and french at university
she loved it
graduated this summer and has a decent job

I did maths with a year abroad. I enjoyed the maths but the year abroad was a great experience. Maths on its own would have been a bit dry I think.

Lots of people study a language for pleasure, not because they will actually use it in a job. However, there are opportunities for linguists in the French speaking offices of large companies so job placements can be more varied and interesting. I think studying a language as well as another subject shows a student is multi-dimensional and has been able to sample an alternative way of life. At a recent interview, where DD was successful, she was asked to tell them about an achievement of which she was proud and why. She told them about her year aboad. It is not always a year that goes smoothly and students really do have to be mature and organised to have a successful year. This will always look good on a CV! The job has no MFL requirement but is in a highly competitive field. Sometimes doing something you love means you can talk about it with enthusiasm. Such a degree will be really hard work, but employers will know that.

French was really useful fore finding and keeping a job.
I didn't speak it absolutely fluently at first and my written French isn't great but honestly I would be able to work where I do without it.
Maths is super important and will make her much much more employable than your average graduate.

I have a friend who did french and physics joint honours and loved it. She then did her PhD in conjunction with an overseas facility where fluent french was a real advantage.

Most importantly though she should study what she enjoys as that is what she will get the most from. A year abroad (which you will get with any degree level language whether you combine it with another subject or not)will broaden her horizons too. My year abroad made me.

I think it would be a great mix of subjects. It's very unlikely she'll be able to start a new language from scratch at university when she is only studying one language but maths and French should make her very employable.