Science Cert Nuim

mrcurious · 19-07-2011 2:18pm #1

HI there,

Starting Foundation Cert in Science in september in NUIM. Is it possible to study Maths to Honours level with this course and an A2 in LC ordinary maths. I enjoy maths and its the subject I actually find interesting and rewarding. I know people say college maths is doable with hard work but I am unsure if this applys if you want to take it to honours level?

Anyone with experience of the Foundation Cert in Science or with pass maths for the LC who went to honours level with it, any information or advice would be great!!

Thanks in advance...MR.C

LeixlipRed · 19-07-2011 2:31pm

I'm not sure what you mean by honours level but if you mean do you achieve a LC honours qualification in maths from this course, no you do not. The maths on the course is a refresher of primary and second level maths up to about the level of ordinary level maths at LC. Then if you progress into a Science degree in NUIM or some other university you will have the opportunity to study maths to degree level.

As for whether it's doable or not, it is most definitely possible. All you need to do is put in 5 years of hard work and there's no reason you couldn't qualify with a degree in mathematics. But you can take it year by year, the maths in university will be unlike what you've seen in school and you may find you enjoy it less or maybe even more than you did previous. Good luck!

mrcurious · 19-07-2011 3:18pm

LeixlipRed wrote: »

I'm not sure what you mean by honours level but if you mean do you achieve a LC honours qualification in maths from this course, no you do not. The maths on the course is a refresher of primary and second level maths up to about the level of ordinary level maths at LC.

I meant college honours level. thanks thats great to hear!!..just one other question I also applied through the cao for the general science degree..I did the leaving in one year this year after spending the last 5 years doing a trade. would I be biting off more than i can chew if I was to accept a place on the general science course in terms of effort needed to learn 3 new subjects?

LeixlipRed · 20-07-2011 3:17pm

I'm not sure to be honest, not knowing you personally I couldn't tell. I suggest you contact the academic advisory people and ask them for some advice. If you're willing to put the effort in and don't want to waste a year then I'm sure you'll be fine. But if time isn't an issue and you think you'd benefit from a gradual introduction at a nice, slow pace then do the science cert first!

mrcurious · 20-07-2011 4:16pm

cool thanks.

pal79 · 22-07-2011 12:45pm

I wasn't sure whether to do go straight into a degree or not but now i'm so glad I did. The university do a summer maths proficiency course which I did last year and this was a life saver. I did ordinary maths for LC and absolutely love maths at university. I chose maths physics last year and the only science subject I did for LC (in 1996!) was ordinary level biology so it's a great opportunity to try something new. If it's all too much for you you can defer before 31st october without any fee implications. The maths support centre at the college is fantastic also. Good luck

LeixlipRed · 22-07-2011 12:50pm

It's too late for the OP to take the summer course though, it's already started.

mrcurious · 22-07-2011 1:17pm

pal79 wrote: »

I wasn't sure whether to do go straight into a degree or not but now i'm so glad I did. The university do a summer maths proficiency course which I did last year and this was a life saver. I did ordinary maths for LC and absolutely love maths at university. I chose maths physics last year and the only science subject I did for LC (in 1996!) was ordinary level biology so it's a great opportunity to try something new. If it's all too much for you you can defer before 31st october without any fee implications. The maths support centre at the college is fantastic also. Good luck

its good to hear you did so well!!..il have to wait for the exam results to see if i got the points..but i must say i am tempted to skip the access course, if the option was there to save a year..

mrcurious · 28-07-2011 2:41pm

Whats the difference between math physics and experimental physics...is it as obvious as one has lots of math one has lots of labs??..

LeixlipRed · 28-07-2011 3:21pm

The difference is the titles. Mathematical or theoretical physics deals with the mathematics and theory behind the physical sciences. Experimental physics still contains some mathematics but is more interested in the observation of physical phenomena.

An example would be the Large Hadron Collider. You need a pile of theoretical physicists to actually come up with a mathematical model for how the thing will work and what it might tell us about the universe. And then experimental physicists actually operate and analyse the results from running the experiment. The two roles overlap of course. They're not completely distinct subjects as such.

mrcurious · 28-07-2011 3:31pm

ok thanks for clearing that up!

on the subject of pure math..iv been told that alot of math graduates find work in finance after their degree...is some of the math in maynooth geared towards financial work?..iv heard DIT branch off into Financial Math towars the end for those interested in that type of work..

LeixlipRed · 28-07-2011 3:47pm

Do you live close to Maynooth? If you wanna call into me on campus I can chat to you about maths, careers, etc,. Don't mind taking a half an hour to run you through it all!

And the issue of maths and finance is a complex one. You can do some financial mathematics in NUIM through a number of routes but doing a degree in pure maths with the right module choices will set you up for a career in finance as well!

LeixlipRed · 28-07-2011 3:48pm

Do you live close to Maynooth? If you wanna call into me on campus I can chat to you about maths, careers, etc,. Don't mind taking a half an hour to run you through it all!

And the issue of maths and finance is a complex one. You can do some financial mathematics in NUIM through a number of routes but doing a degree in pure maths with the right module choices will set you up for a career in finance as well!

mrcurious · 28-07-2011 4:09pm

LeixlipRed wrote: »

If you wanna call into me on campus I can chat to you about maths, careers, etc,. Don't mind taking a half an hour to run you through it all!

That'd be great, im not living around maynooth but i will be up there in the next two week to look at accom...i could let u know and call to campus?

LeixlipRed · 28-07-2011 4:12pm

Yeh, just give me a shout on here when you're about, I'm around most of the time!

markc1184 · 28-07-2011 11:07pm

When I done this course, for semester 2 there was an option to stick to the Maths that was done in semester 1 or you could choose to do the advanced option as they called it. I'd recommend doing the advanced when the chance comes. It goes into a lot more depth than what the rest of the class done. It's not too difficult either if you stay on top of things.

LeixlipRed · 28-07-2011 11:14pm

Doesn't happen anymore, they got rid of it years ago, everyone does the "advanced" maths now.

Edit: Do you mean in first year or second year? If you mean first year that option is gone 4 years. But if you mean in second year to take the choice of doing introduction to analysis then that's still happening.

markc1184 · 28-07-2011 11:29pm

I only done the science and engineering cert course in 09/10 and there was definitely an option to do advanced Maths in semester 2.

LeixlipRed · 29-07-2011 9:11am

Sorry, I thought you meant in 1st Science, I'm not sure about the Cert as I don't really deal with that.

mrcurious · 19-08-2011 11:18pm

Turns out il be fine!!..results are in on the maths front i got an A1...go me!!

LeixlipRed · 20-08-2011 9:14am

Well done! So are you going straight into Science or doing the Science Cert?

mrcurious · 20-08-2011 9:49am

LeixlipRed wrote: »

Well done! So are you going straight into Science or doing the Science Cert?

Thanks!!!..Iv accepted a place on the science cert...and unless a miracle brings down the points for science i wont be getting in as overall i got 345...im looking forward to starting tho and becoming a maynoothian!!

LeixlipRed · 21-08-2011 8:03pm

Cool, good luck with it!

mrcurious · 08-09-2011 6:41pm

LeixlipRed wrote: »

Cool, good luck with it!

Hey lexlip what sorta stuff will they do on a one week intensive maths course?..the cert hav one from 12th to 17th....dislike...id planned a pub tour of maynooth

...

LeixlipRed · 08-09-2011 6:55pm

Not sure about the one week course to be honest, go the first day sure and if it's not up to much I'm sure you can just skip it.

Mz Lazy · 10-09-2011 5:56pm

Mr curious, I've done the science cert last year so I'd be happy to help you with any questions!

Oh and the week maths course that you should be starting on Monday, you should try get to it, they give lots of information and talks from the teachers and lecturers that you will have throughout the year, but for me I found it helpful to get to know my class mates which is the important bit

mrcurious · 11-09-2011 9:39am

Mz Lazy wrote: »

Mr curious, I've done the science cert last year so I'd be happy to help you with any questions!

Oh and the week maths course that you should be starting on Monday, you should try get to it, they give lots of information and talks from the teachers and lecturers that you will have throughout the year, but for me I found it helpful to get to know my class mates which is the important bit

hey mz lazy I was wonderin bout books...what do i need to buy?..and how many hours a week the course is..thats it really..everythin else will be explained i suppose!

Mz Lazy · 11-09-2011 10:14am

To be honest I didnt buy any books. Some of the other lads bought the maths book but didnt use it because in all your classes they give you the notes! I cant remember exactly how many hours a week but i think first semester it was 20 hours and then second semester it was only maybe 12 or 14 hours.

Will you be in on wednesday? If you can be then make sure to go in and tell the others if they haven't been told already, myself and my friend who also done this course last year are coming in at 2pm to talk with ye all about how we found it and our experiences with it. You can ask all the questions you like there, we'll be happy to help and Emer sheerin said we can take as long as we want. It'll be good to get a recent students aspect of it and itll be informal so hopefully the class will feel at ease and ask everything they need to know

Any other questions you might need to know before wednesday or anything you want me to find out for you before then? If not, see you there!

mrcurious · 11-09-2011 10:46am

Mz Lazy wrote: »

To be honest I didnt buy any books. Some of the other lads bought the maths book but didnt use it because in all your classes they give you the notes! I cant remember exactly how many hours a week but i think first semester it was 20 hours and then second semester it was only maybe 12 or 14 hours.

Will you be in on wednesday? If you can be then make sure to go in and tell the others if they haven't been told already, myself and my friend who also done this course last year are coming in at 2pm to talk with ye all about how we found it and our experiences with it. You can ask all the questions you like there, we'll be happy to help and Emer sheerin said we can take as long as we want. It'll be good to get a recent students aspect of it and itll be informal so hopefully the class will feel at ease and ask everything they need to know Any other questions you might need to know before wednesday or anything you want me to find out for you before then? If not, see you there!

yea il be there..il pass on the msg..sound

Science Cert Nuim

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