Gerry Hiscock
Among postgraduate mathematics students there is a common desire for deeper knowledge and a great...
What did you do before you started your course?
Worked for four years in funds management as an investment research analyst.
What motivated you to study this degree/major?
I loved the theory of finance and had a greater inclination towards the quantitative side than many of my peers. In particular, I had always wanted to gain greater insight into the mathematical derivations of some of the key ideas and formulas.
What do you enjoy most about your degree?
The deeper insights that studying maths provides have been really satisfying. You begin to understand the underlying mechanics of a lot of things that are glossed over pretty quickly in a commerce degree.
I've also found that many of the other postgrad students studying maths have similar motivations; there's a common desire for deeper knowledge and a great sense of camaraderie that's been fantastic.
Why did you choose to study at UTS?
Surprisingly, UTS is one of the only universities that offers an entry pathway for people interested in studying maths who do not have a related undergraduate degree (via the Graduate Certificate of Mathematics)
What is it like to study at UTS Science?
Rewarding. I've been impressed with the quality of the faculty and my fellow students. The teaching staff generally have two really important attributes:
- They are clearly very knowledgeable in their respective areas of mathematics; and
- They are great communicators, which is important for distilling difficult concepts and getting the message across to students.
Is there any advice you would give to students studying this degree?
Your application and dedication is key to absorbing the material and doing well. You'll need to invest serious time and effort, but if you do so you'll find this a very interesting field that will really broaden your thinking and approach to problem solving.
What would you like to do once you complete by your degree
Originally, the intention was to re-enter the financial services industry in a more quantitative role. However, after realising how fundamental maths is to solving many real world problems I'm finding I'm far more open minded with respect to the future.
Optimisation is a really interesting branch of applied mathematics and I'm definitely interested in looking at what opportunities there might be in industry.
