Mathematics is out of favour with young Australians, however it is a discipline that is key to the advancement of our nation and some experts see now as the best time to enter the field.

According to Central Queensland University’s Informatics Lecturer Rob McDougall we need to excite young people about mathematics because “the mathematics of today will fuel the applications of tomorrow”.

He said despite today’s deflated popularity of mathematics, people employed in mathematics-related fields do exceptionally well with starting salaries when compared to graduates in most other fields.

“The pervasiveness of mathematics is its strength and weakness. Mathematics has always suffered by not having a career directly linked to it. If you study dentistry you qualify as a dentist, if you study law you qualify to be a lawyer, but if you study mathematics you qualify to do – a lot of things,” Dr McDougall said.

“Many universities are moving away from mind-maturing disciplines and towards vocational specialisation, like nursing and journalism.

Dr McDougall believes mathematics needs to change with the times and become more relevant to our younger generation.

“The mathematics community has a history it can be proud of, but needs to change with the times.

“Mathematics has to take the strengths of its traditions forward to rediscover itself in the new millennium. There are many new fields opening up in mathematical applications such as bioinformatics, date mining, security and integrity.

Mathematicians continue to make an impact on today’s world. “Advances in mathematical modelling and optimisation have made very difficult problems from only a decade ago, suddenly more accessible – improved weather forecasting, stock market fluctuations, restoration of incomplete sets of information (eg corrupted digital images) to name a very few.

CQU offers a mathematics program titled Bachelor of Informatics, which opens doors for graduates into a range of mathematical fields.

Dr McDougall also sighted a problem with the teaching of mathematics in Central Queensland schools.

“Central Queensland is no different from other regional places in Australia in that a lot of mathematics is being taught by people who do not hold a mathematics degree.

“At CQU we offer students the chance to get a solid foundation in the discipline,” Dr McDougall said. “CQU offers a double degree in mathematic sciences and education, producing quality teachers of mathematics.

Photo: Rob McDougall