Why Study Mathematics? is an insightful guide for anyone consider­ing studying mathematics at university. It explains the sort of maths you can expect to find and how it will be taught, and highlights the wide variety of career options that a maths degree opens up. It also includes important examples of where maths is used in the real world. I recommend it to all prospective maths students and their parents.
— Nick Higham, Royal Society Research Professor and Richardson Professor of Applied Mathematics, University of Manchester

The mystery of a mathematics degree – what it is, where it leads and why it’s useful – is unlocked in this easy read. Detailed, accessible and broad ranging, Vicky Neale refines the complex and varying nature of high-level mathematics into an understandable, useful and relatable form. An ideal guide for A level maths students when pondering their next steps.
— Kerry Burnham, Headteacher of Exeter Maths School

Why Study Mathematics? explores in depth the various options that a maths degree has to offer as well as providing expert guidance on what to expect from a maths degree. Neale addresses all the questions that an enthusiastic mathematician considering a maths degree might have. She refutes the myth that studying maths beyond school/college is restrictive or overwhelmingly challenging. Neale’s book is both informative and engaging: it made me want to study a mathematics degree all over again, or at least revisit certain topics that are discussed. I highly recommend this book to any student or maths enthusiast wanting to study mathematics at university. Being a mathematics teacher myself, this book is definitely a resource I shall be directing A level students to.
— Rebecca Blazewicz, mathematics teacher, Bristol Grammar School

Another great book from Vicky Neale. An extremely useful guide for students (and their advisors!) on studying mathematics at university.
— Dr Kevin Houston, School of Mathematics, University of Leeds

★Studying any subject at degree level is an investment in the future that involves significant cost. Now more than ever, students and their parents need to weigh up the potential benefits of university courses. That’s where the Why Study series comes in. This series of books, aimed at students, parents and teachers, explains in practical terms the range and scope of an academic subject at university level and where it can lead in terms of careers or further study. Each book tries to both enthuse the reader about its subject and answer the crucial questions that a college prospectus does not.

★A series books written by renowned experts and scholars, Professor of History at George Mason University Peter N. Stearns, President of the British Geographical Society Alan Parkinson, Lecturer in The Institute of Mathematics at Oxford University and PhD in Mathematics at Cambridge University Vicki Neil and so on.

★Recommended by Professor of Modern Cultural History at the University of Cambridge Peter Mandalay, distinguished British social geographer and Special Honorary Professor of Geography at the University of Oxford Danny Dorling and so on.


★‘Why Study Economics’ and more follow-up works are planned.

4 titles: ‘Why Study Mathematics?’ ‘Why Study History’, ‘Why Study Geography?’, ‘Why Study Languages?’.

The third title in our Why Study series is Why Study Mathematics?

Considering studying maths at university? Wondering whether a maths degree will get you a good job, and what you might earn? Want to know what it’s actually like to study maths at degree level? This book tells you what you need to know.

Vicky Neale is the Whitehead Lecturer at the Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford, and a Supernumerary Fellow at Balliol College. She teaches pure mathematics to undergraduates and combines this with work on public engagement with mathematics: she gives public lectures, leads workshops with school students, and has appeared on numerous BBC radio and television programmes.

One of her current interests is in using knitting and crochet to explore mathematical ideas. She's the author of Closing the Gap: The Quest to Understand Prime Numbers (Oxford University Press, 2017).