Mathematics accreditation opens doors for Northumbria graduates

Mathematics courses delivered by Northumbria University, Newcastle have been verified as meeting the very highest standards.

Northumbria’s BSc in Mathematics and MMath programmes have been accredited by the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications (IMA) – a national body which champions the importance and relevance of Mathematics in society.

The status means that Northumbria Mathematics graduates can apply for Chartered Mathematician (CMath) designation on completion of their studies; opening-up more career and development opportunities and boosting their earning potential.

Pete Philipson, Head of Mathematics and Statistics at Northumbria University, said: “A maths degree will train you to think logically to solve problems, which is why maths graduates are in such high demand across a wide range of careers – from online marketing to supply chain management.

“This formal accreditation from the IMA verifies that our teaching meets the very highest standards, and also offers employers the confidence that they’re recruiting high quality maths graduates.

“At Northumbria, we focus on applying our high-quality teaching to real-life situations, giving our students the opportunity to use their skills to find solutions to some of society’s trickiest and most interesting problems.

“We also set the bar high with entry requirements and teach in small groups to ensure we can nurture individual interests and strengths to get the very best from each student. The result is high calibre graduates who are highly sought after by employers.”

Maths graduates from Northumbria University go into wide range of careers each year, including finance, risk analysis, IT, retail, data analysis, infrastructure, logistics and more.

Jack Clare, aged 23, completed his Maths BSc with Northumbria University earlier this year, and went straight into a graduate management role with retail giant Tesco.

He now uses the problem-solving skills he honed during his degree studies to help develop technology solutions that will improve Tesco’s business processes and customer experiences.

He says: “Tesco were looking for graduates with a problem-solving mind set who could think logically, so my Mathematics degree put me in a great position. Maths was always my strong subject at school, and I enjoyed the problem-solving aspects of my course at Northumbria, applying maths to situations to come up with solutions.”

Jack, who transferred to Northumbria from another North East university part way through his second year, added: “I loved studying at Northumbria and the smaller class sizes were a huge plus point. Coming from a university where you’d have what seemed like hundreds of students in one maths lecture, to learning in smaller groups of between 10 and 15 made a big difference.”

Northumbria students on a Mathematics programme can also boost their job prospects by opting for a work placement year to put their learning into practice, and the university has close links with employer partners including P&G, Nissan, Rolls Royce, Lloyds Bank and IBM.

Gert Botha, Programme Leader for Undergraduate Mathematics at Northumbria, added:

“Our teaching is practically-focused and work placements are very popular, offering students the chance to work on live tasks that involve skills such as problem solving, logical thinking and computer programming. We have great relationships with our employer partners who are always impressed by the calibre of Northumbria students on placement, with many of them going on to receive job offers from their placement employer after graduation.”

The IMA accreditation means that students on the MMath programme at Northumbria are now able to apply immediately for Chartered Mathematician (CMath) status on completion of their studies, whilst those graduating from the BSc in Mathematics can apply for CMath status after further relevant training and experience.

As part of the accreditation, the IMA also awards student prizes for overall performance in the first and second undergraduate years at Northumbria.

Accreditation from the IMA is granted for up to six years, with regular reviews to ensure that standards continue to be met.

To find out more about studying on a Mathematics degree programme at Northumbria University, visit www.northumbria.ac.uk/maths or come along to our Undergraduate Open Day on 24th November. To register to attend, visit www.northumbria.ac.uk