Now Hiring: Careers in Mathematics

Now Hiring: Careers in Mathematics

In the current economic climate, with unemployment rates rising, who worries about what math courses high school students take? One group, KnowHow2GO.org, is sponsoring an advertising campaign for--of all things--algebra. I saw this poster in my neighborhood and was puzzled: why would you advertise algebra, a required course for virtually all American high school students? It turns out that KnowHow2GO is concerned that students from low-income families, or who are the first in their families to pursue higher education, don't make it to college. Research shows that these students often lack the guidance they need to prepare for college.

The campaign, which started in January 2007 and is sponsored by the American Council on Education, Lumina Foundation for Education and the Ad Council , encourages secondary-level students to prepare for college by following these four steps:

1. Be a pain – Let everyone know that you’re going to college and need their help.

2. Push yourself – Working a little harder today will make getting into college even easier.

3. Find the right fit – Find out what kind of school is the best match for you and your career goals.

4. Put your hands on some cash - If you think you can't afford college, think again. There's lots of aid out there.

The algebra poster above illustrates Step 2: College-bound students should challenge themselves by choosing rigorous courses, including Algebra 1, Geometry, and Algebra 2 & Trigonometry.

Advertising mathematics is not a new phenomenon, as illustrated by the WPA Federal Arts Project poster above (c. 1935), which points the way to a list of math-related careers that are still relevant today (though the title "calculating machine operator" has gone out of fashion.)

The American Mathematics Society maintains an excellent Web resource of careers for recent graduates who hold a Bachelor's degree in mathematics. Students who think that sounds totally boring should check out the "What Can I Do With a Math Career?"poster and the "Career Information for High School Students" brochure. Does being an animator, a pollster, an air traffic controller, an urban designer, or a climate analyst sound boring? (Comment below if it does.)

My last stop in this reverie about careers in mathematics was the job-search site Monster.com, which returned 4,209 postings for the key word "math."