Department of Mathematics

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Introduction

Mathematics is the exact study of abstract patterns and relationships. The objects that mathematicians study - such as numbers, operations, shapes, and relationships - are abstract and underlie all physical reality but have no physical reality themselves, existing only in the consciousness of the mathematician. Thus, mathematicians study the functioning of intelligence itself. In their work, mathematicians refer to the principles of intelligence in their own consciousness and are able to discover the same principles of order and intelligence that govern all areas of life. Thus, mathematics is able to provide the basic language for all other sciences and has applications in every area of life.

Students who study mathematics at Maharishi International University learn to see the connections between the functioning of their own intelligence and mathematical knowledge. They acquire the quantitative skills, problem-solving abilities, and clarity of thinking that provide a basis for success and leadership in technology-based careers. Graduates of the program in mathematics are prepared to enter a wide range of careers or continue their education with graduate or professional studies.

Programs Offered

• BS in Mathematics, Mathematics and Computer Science Track
• Minor in Mathematics

Special Features

• Students gain an understanding of the parts of mathematics in relation to each other, to themselves, and to the overall body of mathematics. This integrated approach to mathematics is relevant, lively, interesting, and fulfilling for students.
• In their first courses, students begin to appreciate the full range of mathematics, from the deepest foundational levels to real-world applications in computer science, physics, engineering, biology, economics, business, and art.
• All courses emphasize conceptual understanding and logical justification, not just memorization of mathematical procedures.
• Students regularly use computer software to clarify principles and develop applications in many of their classes.
• The Mathematics department offers a friendly and nurturing environment for all students.
• All faculty are outstanding teachers. One has received an award for outstanding teaching from the Mathematical Association of America.
• Students may present their own research papers at the annual meeting of the Iowa Section of the Mathematical Association of America. Several students have received Outstanding Student Paper awards.
• Students participate in national and regional mathematics competitions, such as the annual Putnam Competition. Two teams have received Honorable Mention for their creativity and teamwork in the national Competition in Mathematical Modeling.
• The Math Club helps students sharpen their problem-solving abilities and encourages them to enter mathematical competitions.
• Research shows that Consciousness-Based Education produces clearer, more orderly thinking, necessary for success in mathematics and careers after graduation.

Mathematics Entrance Requirements

Entry-Level Mathematics Requirements

Students who intend to earn an MIU bachelor’s degree, specialization, or minor in mathematics, computer science, or physics must prove entry-level competency in mathematics at the level of MATH 162 - Functions And Graphs 2  as a prerequisite to the following required courses:

• MATH 281 - Calculus 1  
• MATH 272 - Discrete Mathematics  
• CS 201 - Procedural Programming  

This entry-level competency in mathematics equivalent to MATH 162  may be proved in one of three ways:

• Transferring qualified credits in a course equivalent to MATH 162 , MATH 281 , or MATH 282  earned at an eligible institution.
• Demonstrating proficiency equivalent to MATH 162  or higher in the on-campus Mathematics Placement Assessment. Submitting official proof of minimum qualifying scores achieved within 3 years prior to enrollment at MIU on specified standardized college-level calculus and/or mathematics exams offered by College Board Advanced Placement (AP), College Level Examination Program (CLEP), or International Baccalaureate Higher Level (IB HL).

To be eligible for credit to fulfill a mathematics course, the student must take the official AP Calculus AB and/or BC exam within 3 years prior to enrollment. At the time of the AP exam, student must designate MIU’s school code as an automatic recipient of the official score report.

A student who has already completed an AP exam within the past 3 years must go to apscore.collegeboard.org to request that scores be sent directly to MIU from College Board. Official AP, CLEP, and/or IB HL scores and transcripts must be sent directly from the issuing organization to MIU in a sealed envelope. Copies made and/or sent by the student will not be accepted.

Transfer Credit Policy for Entry-level Mathematics

Transferred credits for a mathematics course completed at an eligible prior post-secondary educational institution will be evaluated to determine if the transferred course fulfills the entry requirement equivalent to MATH 162 .

Definition of an Eligible Institution for Transfer Credit
Transferred credits for a mathematics course will only be evaluated for eligibility to fulfill the entry requirement equivalent to MATH 162  if the course was completed at a postsecondary institution that meets the following criteria:

• The institution has regional or national accreditation
• The institution is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education
• The institution defines a credit hour equivalent to the standard set by the U.S. Department of Education

Timeframe, Grade, and Department Criteria for Transfer Credits to Fulfill MATH 162
Transferred credits for mathematics courses completed at an eligible prior postsecondary educational institution will be evaluated to determine if the transferred course fulfills the entry requirement equivalent to MATH 162  if the course meets the following criteria:

• The course was completed within two (2) semesters prior to admission at MIU
• The course shows a final posted grade of B or better on the student’s transcript
• The course was offered and taught by a mathematics department at the prior eligible institution

A student seeking approval for transferred credits to fulfill the entry requirement equivalent to MATH 162  may also be required to provide supporting documentation requested by the mathematics department including, but not limited to, course descriptions, course syllabus, institutional catalog, course catalog, or course projects. There is no guarantee that transferred credit will be approved to fulfill the entry requirement equivalent to MATH 162 . Transferred credits to fulfill the entry requirement equivalent to MATH 162  may not be approved for courses requiring up-to-date knowledge of course topics, trends, technology, software, and/or hardware. Transferred credits will not fulfill any requirement for MATH 051 , MATH 152 , MATH 153 , or MATH 161 . If any of these courses are required, they must be fulfilled either by taking the course and passing it or by passing the Mathematics Placement Assessment at that level.

ENTRY-LEVEL MATHEMATICS PLACEMENT ASSESSMENT

Students with no transferred credits approved to fulfill the entry requirement equivalent to MATH 162  or MATH 281  must take the on-campus Mathematics Placement Assessment to determine their level of proficiency in mathematics. If the demonstrated level of proficiency is MATH 162 , the student may take any of the following courses required for their program: MATH 281 , MATH 272 , or CS 201 .

If the student’s demonstrated proficiency is lower than MATH 162 , the assessment may be repeated up to 3 additional times for a higher placement. After the 4th attempt, a student placing below MATH 162  must complete designated prerequisite mathematics courses in sequential order. Successfully completing all mathematics courses required for a placement level lower than MATH 162  may add one or two semesters of prerequisite mathematics study to the program. A practice Mathematics Placement Assessment and learning preparation modules are available online on request.

Transfer Credit and Exam Waivers for Required Courses

Students may be awarded transfer credit to fulfill mathematics and/or computer science course requirements other than MATH 162  in one of two ways:

• Transferring qualified credits equivalent to the required course(s) earned at an eligible institution.
• Submitting official proof of minimum qualifying scores achieved within 3 years prior to enrollment at MIU on specified college-level, standardized exams offered by College Board Advanced Placement (AP), College Level Examination Program (CLEP), or International Baccalaureate Higher Level (IB HL).

Transfer Credit Policy for Mathematics Courses Required for a Major

Transferred credits for mathematics and computer science courses completed at eligible prior post-secondary educational institution(s) will be evaluated to determine if the transferred course(s) fulfills requirements for courses other required for a degree, specialization, or minor in Mathematics and/or Computer Science. A student seeking approval for transferred credits to fulfill mathematics course requirements may also be required to provide supporting documentation requested by the mathematics department, including, but not limited to, course descriptions, course syllabus, institutional catalog, course catalog, or course projects. There is no guarantee that transferred credit will be approved to fulfill MIU mathematics course requirements. Transferred credits to fulfill these requirements may not be approved for courses requiring up-to-date knowledge of course topics, trends, technology, software, and/or hardware.

Definition of an Eligible Institution for Transfer Credit
Transferred credits will only be evaluated for eligibility to fulfill the requirements of the BS in Mathematics and/or Computer Science if the transferred course was completed at a post-secondary institution that meets the following criteria:

• The institution has regional or national accreditation
• The institution is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education
• The institution defines a credit hour equivalent to the standard set by the U.S. Department of Education

Timeframe, Grade, and Department Criteria for Transfer Credits
Transferred credits for a course completed at an eligible prior post-secondary educational institution will be evaluated for equivalency with a required mathematics and computer science course other than MATH 162  if the transferred course meets the following criteria:

• The course was completed within three years prior to admission at MIU.
• The course shows a final posted grade of B or better on the student’s transcript.
• The course was offered and taught by a mathematics, physics, computer science, or business department, respectively, at the prior eligible institution

Transferred credits for computer science courses will be evaluated for equivalency with CS 201  and/or CS 203  if the transferred course meets the following criteria:

• The course was taught using JAVA (not another language)
• The course was completed within three years prior to admission at MIU.
• The course shows a final posted grade of B or better on the student’s transcript.
• The course was offered and taught by a computer science department at the prior eligible institution

Transfer Credit Limits
Approved transfer credits may fulfill a maximum of 50% of the credits required for the BS in Mathematics, Mathematics and Computer Science Track. Students who have taken equivalent courses at a prior institution and applied the credits to an earned bachelor’s degree will not be awarded transfer credit. If qualified, some courses may be approved to fulfill the equivalent major requirements.

Credit for Standardized Exam Scores in Mathematics or Calculus

Credit for MATH 281 - Calculus 1  can be earned if the student officially submits minimum scores on one of the following exams taken within 3 years prior to enrolling at MIU:

• College Board Advanced Placement (AP) Calculus AB score of 4 or higher
• College Board Advanced Placement (AP) Calculus BC score of 4 or higher
• College Level Examination Program (CLEP) score of 60 or higher
• International Baccalaureate Higher Level (IB HL) Mathematics Applications & Interpretation or Analysis & Approaches grade of 5 or higher

Credit for both MATH 281 - Calculus 1  and MATH 282 - Calculus 2  can be earned if the student officially submits an official AP Calculus BC score of 4 or higher. To be eligible for credit, the student must take the official AP Calculus AB and/or BC exam within 3 years prior to enrollment. At the time of the AP Calculus AB and/or BC exam, student must designate MIU’s school code as an automatic recipient of the official score report. A student who has already completed an AP exam within the past 3 years must go to apscore.collegeboard.org to request that scores be sent directly to MIU from College Board. Official AP, CLEP, and/or IB HL scores and transcripts must be sent directly from the issuing organization to MIU in a sealed envelope. Copies made and/or sent by the student will not be accepted.

Satisfying Course Requirements Through Examination Alone

A student may request to take an examination in order to fulfill mathematics, computer science, or physics courses required for a major, minor, or specialization in the following cases:

• Transferred credit was evaluated and failed to meet a criterion for Timeframe, Grade, or Department.

The student does not have prior academic credits but has demonstrated prior experience in the topics of a required course.

If their request is approved, the student may attempt the examination one time only. If a student successfully passes the examination, the required course will appear on the student’s transcript with a letter grade of PW, indicating the requirement to take the required course is waived. A PW grade has no impact on the student’s CGPA, completion rate, or maximum time frame for the purposes of calculating SAP.

Double Major with the BS in Computer Science

It is not possible to take a double major in the Computer Science Track of the BS in Mathematics and the BS in Computer Science as there is too much overlap. However, students may obtain a Major in Computer Science with a Secondary Major in Mathematics by taking and passing 6 mathematics courses at the 300 and/or 400 level, if offered, to bring the total up to 24 credits of mathematics courses outside the requirements of the BS in Computer Science.

Entry into MS Computer Science from BS Mathematics, Computer Science Track

Satisfactory completion of either the BS in Computer Science or BS in Mathematics, Mathematics and Computer Science Track allows students to apply for the MS in Computer Science. Satisfactory completion means the student attained a grade of at least C- for the mathematics courses, an overall GPA of at least 2.5 and an overall GPA of at least 3.3 (B+) for the CS courses alone. Note that this is not the only requirement for entry into the MS in Computer Science. Results of additional tests, work experience in programming, English proficiency, and many other factors may be considered in determining acceptance to the MS in Computer Science. Students with a bachelor’s degree from a postsecondary institution outside of the U.S. who have earned 120 or more US-equivalent credits of courses with grades C or above, are deemed to have the equivalent of a U.S. bachelor’s degree. Students who have already been awarded a 4-year U.S. or U.S.-equivalent bachelor’s degree and wish to enter the MS in Computer Science, may or may not be accepted to the MS in Computer Science. Those who do not yet qualify to enter the MS in Computer Science may choose to enroll for the Computer Science Track of the BS in Mathematics as a second bachelor’s degree (if otherwise qualified by the usual MIU standards) and re-apply to the MS in Computer Science after completing the following path.

Fast Path to Ms Computer Science

After satisfactorily completing the courses below while enrolled in the Computer Science Track of the BS in Mathematics as a second bachelor’s degree, students may qualify to re-apply to the MS in Computer Science and, if accepted, do not need to complete the Computer Science Track of the BS in Mathematics. If accepted and they do not complete the Computer Science Track of the BS in Mathematics, they are not awarded the BS in Mathematics at MIU. If they do not qualify to re-apply to the MS in Computer Science, or qualify and are not accepted, and have a 3.0 GPA in the courses CS 201 , CS 203 , and CS 221 , they may continue and complete the Computer Science Track of the BS in Mathematics. Satisfactory completion requires that the student attains a grade of at least C- for all mathematics courses and a CS GPA of at least 3.3 (B+) for the computer science courses alone.

Qualifying to re-apply for the MS in Computer Science does not guarantee acceptance. Results of additional tests, work experience in programming, English proficiency, and many other factors are considered in determining acceptance. Students may even be required to take additional computer science courses and re-apply for the MS in Computer Science later.

The following courses must be successfully completed before re-applying to the MS in Computer Science:

• Entry-Level Mathematics Requirement courses
• STC 108 - Exploring Consciousness  
• CS 201 - Procedural Programming  
• CS 203 - Object Oriented Programming  
• CS 221 - Data Structures  
• CS 321 - Introduction To Algorithms  
• CS 363 - Computer Organization And Architecture  
• CS 390 - Fundamental Programming Practices 
• MATH 272 - Discrete Mathematics 
• MATH 281 - Calculus 1  
• MATH 282 - Calculus 2  
• One Forest Academy course per full-time semester

If a student is missing only MATH 282 - Calculus 2  when entering the MS CS from this path, they must take it when it is offered as an extra course during the MS CS, lengthening their MS in Computer Science by at least one block.

A student with a prior bachelor’s degree from an institution outside of the U.S. who has earned less than 120 U.S.-equivalent credits of courses with grade C or above, does not have the equivalent of a US bachelor’s degree. The student will be admitted to MIU (if otherwise qualified by the usual MIU standards) as an undergraduate student with a maximum of 90 transfer credits (for courses with a grade of C or above). In this case, provided the student is awarded no less than 90 U.S.-equivalent transfer credits, the student is eligible to follow the fast path to the MS in Computer Science described above.

Fulfilling Requirements of the MS in Computer Science by Courses Taken During the Computer Science Track of the BS in Mathematics

Up to two CS courses plus CS 401 , taken at MIU while enrolled in the Computer Science Track of the BS in Mathematics and passed with grade at least B, that were not applied to a completed major or minor nor applied to the 128 credits required for a completed BS degree, may be applied to fulfill specific course requirements of the MS in Computer Science and thus reduce the number of courses required for the MS in Computer Science.

More such courses may be applied to fulfill specific course requirements of the MS in Computer Science, but not to reduce the number of courses required for the MS in Computer Science.

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