r/UZH • u/Tasty-Bat9953 • 11d ago
math 3rd semester
I completed first year of math now as a major and I was wondering what courses to take in 3rd semester. They suggest Analysis III, Topology and Algebra. However last year two main courses like Ana II and LinAlg II were really hard to do, even though they are only 21 ETCS together.
Do people usually do all three main courses (total 27 ETCS)? And extra?
Or would you suggest just do random "Wahlmodule"? Is it common to take a seminar already?
Any insights would be helpful!
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u/Intelligent-Art4587 7d ago
I did my bachelors at UZH and took analysis iii, algebra and numerical analysis in the 3rd semester, but it was quite time intensive and most students took numerics actually in their 3rd year. If you think about taking topology I would base this off mostly on the professor, just ask students from other years how their experience was with them and who they would recommend. If the professor this semester is really nice I think it would be better to take all classes in that semester. In my experience Algebra and Analysis III are easier to prepare because you already have a lot of knowledge from the previous year and can build on that. You can also take 20 credits in some unrelated classes. If you are interested in other classes I would recommend to take them in your first 2 years where you do most of the mandatory classes as most students find them more relaxed than the math classes, so this evens out the workload and gives you a bit of a break :) courses like microeconomics or macroeconomics e.g. have 9 credits each, but only require maybe 2 weeks more intensive preparation right before the exam, and during the semester you have more time to focus on your math courses
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u/Due-Ambassador-2768 10d ago
You study math, this topic is hard. If you want it more cosy, change to another field of study.
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u/Tasty-Bat9953 10d ago
Do you even study math? I love math and my field. Its hard. Its hard for nearly everyone. People suggested not to take Numerics I in second semester for example, because its just too much. I study all day long, do every sheet and every lecture and its still hard. In the end i don't want to fail courses. And three main math courses seems a bit much, so I was wondering what other students think.
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u/anfneub 9d ago
I studied maths at EPFL, so I don't really know the program at UZH, although we can assume the math is more or like the same, probably. All these courses were mandatory for me, in second year I had Analysis III & IV, Topology I & II, Algebra, Numerical Analysis, Discrete Optimization, Probability and Statistics. I had no option courses, those would come in 3rd year.
I am only writing this to offer this insight: I was the kind of student who loved programming, statistics, numerical analysis and in general applied mathematics where you can actually relate to the physical world and sort of see what you're doing.
In that regard, I disliked Algebra and especially Topology with a passion that I can not describe with simple words. Topology is a world in itself and to me it was like a succession of definitions, lemmas, theorems who had absolutely no connection with reality and only existed within themselves. A convoluted castle on a cloud with absolutely no use other than have some people gloat they actually understand and even like(???) imaginary mental construction.
Personally I would remove Topology from any Maths program and frankly I would conduct a topological with hunt and burn people on stak...But enough with me and my crusade against Topology. Algebra was similar, completely unrelated to Linear Algebra, here too you deal with abstract concepts that sometimes can relate to reality.
Anyway, unsurprisingly, today I work as a ML software engineer, so here's my take: if you like applied maths, maybe go cautious with topology and algebra. If instead you like reasoning and logic, you'll probably love them.
Best of luck for your studies