What made you decide to study mathematics at university?

I ended up studying mathematics because it was a very flexible program. While I took mathematics as my major, I was able to explore many different units from across the university as electives, which was quite enriching.

Moreover, I very much enjoyed the way mathematics was taught at university, which was totally different from how it was taught in high school. Each unit begins by establishing a clear set of definitions, then uses only these basic concepts to develop powerful results. This systematic approach made mathematics very rewarding to study because I could see exactly how each idea builds upon the previous ones.

What’s been the highlight of your degree so far?

Definitely being part of the University's wonderful mathematics community! The nice thing is that everyone is very open and always happy to have a conversation about anything, not just mathematics. Over the years, I have become great friends with many other mathematics students and also many professors. Moreover, the mathematics society (SUMS) runs weekly mathematics lectures, which are always a great opportunity to learn and present some interesting mathematics in the company of friends. It makes the degree a most welcoming and supportive environment.

Which topic have you enjoyed studying the most, and what did you like about it?

For my honours thesis, I am studying a topic called Quantum Graph Theory. The basic object is called a graph, which is a collection of dots (vertices) and lines connecting the dots (edges). Graphs are a useful way to represent relationships between entities, one example being how people might interact in a social network.

Quantum graph theory is the study of differential equations on these graphs, focussing on properties like how the solutions are influenced by the lengths of the edges and how the vertices are connected.

I find the theory very interesting because it brings together tools and intuition from very disparate branches of mathematics. It even incorporates tools from physics! In this way, quantum graph theory brings together almost every subject I have taken in my mathematics major in a very nice way.

What would you like to do after your degree?

The nice thing about studying mathematics is that it helps develop strong analytical skills, particularly the ability to break down a big problem into more manageable chunks and then devise reasonable solutions that consider the relevant variables and constraints.

Consequently, I believe that a mathematics degree can open doors to many different opportunities. Personally, I do not know what I would like to do yet – perhaps I could study a postgraduate degree, but I am also drawn to rapidly moving fields like data science, wireless communication, and artificial intelligence. I suppose time will tell which direction proves most appealing.

What advice would you give to someone who’s thinking about studying maths at university?

Rest assured that studying mathematics at university is nothing like high school, in all the best ways possible. Since the focus at university is all about learning new concepts and building them up into interesting results, rather than solving the same problem over and over again with slightly different numbers, it is a lot more fun!

Moreover, there are so many branches of mathematics to explore, from abstract fields like group theory to practical areas like differential equations, so even if you’re uncertain about your preferences now, you’re almost certainly going to discover an area that resonates with you. There are many undergraduate research programs that run over the university breaks, and I believe they are a wonderful place to experience how mathematics is done at an academic level.