Entry
Level Courses
The selection of a mathematics course should reflect
the student's college requirements, major requirements,
mathematics preparation, and interests. Flexibility
should also be considered, since students often change
majors or colleges. The information below provides an
overview of the 100-level mathematics courses to assist
the student in making an informed course selection.
Students are encouraged to contact a representative
of the Department of Mathematics and Statistics or their
academic adviser. Additional information is available
at the Department of Mathematics and Statistics website: http://www.bgsu.edu/departments/math/.
MATH
131, the first course in the standard
calculus sequence, is required for all students
in the Bachelor of Science degree program
in the College of Arts and Sciences. In
addition, it satisfies the mathematics requirement
for the B.S. in Business Administration
degree and is required or recommended for
a variety of additional majors. MATH 131
provides a high degree of flexibility in
meeting requirements and is prerequisite
to the higher-level mathematics curriculum
and courses in other areas.
The
MATH
134-135
sequence includes all the topics from MATH
131. Completion of this sequence is equivalent
to completion of MATH 131 in terms of requirements
and prerequisites.
MATH
126 includes topics from differential
calculus, integral calculus and some matrix
theory. It satisfies the mathematics requirement
for all specializations in the B.S. in Business
Administration degree and some majors in
other degree programs. This course does
not satisfy the mathematics requirement
for the Bachelor of Science degree in the
College of Arts and Sciences, nor does it
satisfy some major or program requirements
in other areas, including some minors in
the College of Business Administration.
Students who complete MATH 126 and subsequently
change to a program of study in computer
science, mathematics, statistics, or the
natural sciences may be required to take
MATH
131 and possibly MATH
129 or MATH
130.
Because
MATH 131 satisfies all requirements met
by 126, the department recommends that qualified
students take 131, since it provides greater
flexibility in meeting requirements and
prerequisites.
MATH
128 and 130
serve as preparatory courses for calculus
students and also satisfy some program or
degree requirements. MATH 130 is an accelerated
version of 128. MATH 128 and 130 satisfy
the prerequisites for both 126 and 131.
MATH
129 satisfies some program requirements
and, in combination with MATH
120 or 122,
prepares students for MATH 131 or 134.
MATH
112, 120,
and 122
are College Algebra courses. MATH 120 is
offered only at Firelands College. The MATH
112-122 sequence is equivalent to MATH 120
in terms of requirements and prerequisites.
MATH 112, 120, and 122 prepare students
for MATH 126 and also satisfy some program
or degree requirements. In general, MATH
128 and 130 will satisfy any requirement
or prerequisite satisfied by 112, 120, or
122, so qualified students are advised to
take MATH 128 or 130 instead of 112, 120,
or 122.
MATH
115 is an introductory statistics course
and is taken by students in various colleges
to satisfy programmatic requirements or
for general background purposes.
MATH
090 and 095
are offered for students who are not prepared
to enter higher-level mathematics courses.
These courses are offered without credit
toward any degree program.
Mathematics
Placement
The mathematics placement examinations are designed
to determine an appropriate first mathematics course.
Placement testing and advice on course selection are
available at Orientation and Registration sessions.
On
main campus, placement tests can be taken during business
hours in the Mathematics and Statistics Department
office (450 Mathematical Sciences Building). On the
BGSU Firelands campus, placement is made using recent
(less than one year old) ACT scores or by taking the
COMPASS test. Students who want to take the COMPASS
test for placement should contact the BGSU Firelands
Student Services office (101 West Building).
Students
are not allowed to take a course above their mathematics
placement. This policy is strictly enforced for the
benefit of the individual student and for the benefit
of other students with higher placements. Historically,
students who have taken a course above their mathematics
placement have done worse than students who placed
into the course.
Students
are encouraged to review material and retake the placement
test if they believe their placement is inappropriately
low. On main campus, students may take the placement
test a total of three times. Students on the BGSU
Firelands campus who believe that their placement
(via ACT or COMPASS) is inappropriately low are permitted
to take (or retake) the COMPASS test only once in
order to obtain a better placement.
Students
are allowed to take a course which comes later in
this list than the course they placed into: 131H,
131, 130, 126, 128, 122, 112, 095, 090.
Prerequisite
Policy
Prerequisites are strictly enforced with exceptions
made only by the instructor. A grade of A, B, C, or
S must be earned in the prerequisite course(s).
Advanced
Placement
Students who have taken a calculus course
in high school may be eligible to enter
the calculus sequence (MATH
131, 232,
233)
at the MATH 232 or 233 level and may be
eligible for credit for one or more calculus
courses. These students are advised to take
the Calculus AB or Calculus BC advanced
placement examinations from the College
Entrance Examinations Board given at their
high school. Credit and placement depends
on the test taken and the score received;
see Registration
Policies and Records Policies: Advanced
Placement for full details and procedures.
Students
who have taken the Statistics AP exam may
get credit for MATH
115. See the link above for details.
