College Guide for the Gifted Mathematician

As a mathematically gifted young adult, you enter college with a sense that the tremendous forward momentum in your mathematical development will proceed - and perhaps accelerate- for many years, perhaps decades, to come. I speak from personal experience. If your teenage years resembled mine, you are accustomed to the terms "mathematical genius" and "genius" describing yourself. You may have memories of winning prizes at numerous local math competitions. You were a kid frequently called in to the principal's office, but for positive recognition rather than punishment. At the current moment, you probably perceive that your mathematical talent will inevitably be regarded as an asset to potential employers. You might dismiss the possibility of facing future unemployment or encountering difficulty finding a job after graduation. With your math degree- especially a graduate degree- you might not even have to apply for jobs; rather, companies will come after you. Right???
Ultimately, reality will set in. I can offer advice to you as I would if I had a time machine, and could travel back in time 15 years to counsel myself. If you are a declared math major, or leaning in this direction, it may be advisable to contemplate your long-term goals to guide your current course of study. A major in mathematics is well suited to the field of education- at the secondary or college/university level, or if you intend to pursue a Ph.D. in math. A math major may serve you well if you are considering applying to enter the military as an officer. In recent years (from personal experience), companies posting finance-related positions with the word "analyst", such as "data analyst", "financial analyst", "demand planning analyst", etc. are generally seeking math majors. If you are seeking an analyst position and can reconcile yourself to a finance-based position, a major in math or applied math- ideally with an economics minor- might be the ideal path for you. I would recommend the same if you are considering becoming an actuary or accountant, careers often associated with a math background; these do, however, require additional study after college. Accountant positions typically require an CPA (2 years in duration). Companies hiring actuaries tend to want evidence of commitment to the profession demonstrated by passing at least the first 2 exams given by the SOA (Society of Actuaries). As a mathematician, you could "easily" order the books to study for these exams, and register to take these exams. You would need to invest the time and money to prepare adequately for these exams (especially the 2nd). As I understand, the first exam is essentially math; subsequent exams become increasingly specialized and difficult.
If you are seeking a more technical position- such as working for aerospace, a computer company, or with engineers- changing your course of study at least slightly is probably advisable. In the past decade, there were countless positions posted that were described as "software engineer", "systems engineer", "C++ programmer" or the like. While these positions usually listed a Bachelor's degree in math as a sufficient educational background, they demanded technical experience which a mathematician finishing college (or perhaps even graduate school) would generally not have. Even an "entry level software engineer" applicant was often expected to have 2 or more years experience programming in C++ and/or Java and/or Visual Basic. If you seek work of this nature, I would recommend you consider changing your major to computer science or engineering. Perhaps your university offers a major combining 2 of these departments- math/computer science, or math/engineering. This might be the ideal choice for you. I make this advice tentatively, as it is difficult to predict the demand/supply of labor in the future.
Perhaps you are planning on pursuing your master's or Ph.D. in math. As I shall describe in subsequent blogs, and from personal experience, the doctoral program is more grueling and demanding than you may realize at present. About 1/2 of doctoral students end up washing out of the program. Bear in mind that practically all who are accepted into the program are "mathematical geniuses."