June 12, 2003
A: FROM MENTOR JUDY LONG IN CO
I didn't like math either, especially Algebra
or Geometry but I could do the homework easily so I
kept taking it. When I was a Senior in high school I
took a class in Calculus and that's when I started to
really like math. It was so different from the other
math classes I had taken and it was so interesting! I
started to appreciate the other math I had taken
because I could see that it was very important to
understand Algebra, Trig and Geometry in order to
understand Calculus. I studied Math in college and
graduated with a BS in Math. Math is so valuable in
day to day life and it's an excellent background for
other studies like the Sciences and Accounting. Don't
give up yet, keep at it and see where it leads!
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A: FROM MENTOR SUZANNE FRANKS IN KS
Lauren, you don't have to love math to be a good scientist and to
have a great time doing science. If you don't like math, it will make
your first two years of college study a little more difficult, since
you will most likely have to take math. And it's always harder to
work at something you don't like than at something you do! However,
not all science careers are equally math-heavy when it gets to the
actual doing of them, as opposed to studying for the degree.
Engineering and the physical sciences will be the most math-heavy
in college and most likely in a career. The life sciences and social
sciences can be less so (although some life and social scientists
get very involved in quantitative, math-heavy research.)
I think when you discover an area of science that you are very
interested in, then the math that you have to learn and use in order
to work in that area will become more interesting to you because you
will see its purpose, and then it will be easier to learn it.
Don't let not loving math hold you back from science! For some
people, it's just like all the training and practice you have to
do for soccer - not as much fun as actually playing a game, but
necessary if you want to do well in the game! Good luck!