What to expect on first year MORSE
The MORSE degree covers huge amounts of content from all four departments – Mathematics, business school, economics and statistics. This makes each module very different which keeps learning exciting. Although sometimes the overlap is very interesting and surprising! I knew that I wanted to study Maths and Economics so MORSE was a no-brainer for me. But if you’ve not studied Economics (you don’t have to, nothing is assumed!) then looking at what you will study is very important. What I’d say though with MORSE that you study as little of some subjects as you wish. Ironically I don’t enjoy economics much at university and I am picking away from it in my second year.
The first year of MORSE is chosen for you although you can pick up extra modules if you wish. This is necessary to give you the understanding of all areas of the subjects. Also some of the mathematics is applicable in all subjects particularly when we are going to infinity! So what modules will you study? I will go through them, talk about my experience and then provide links to module pages. I really encourage you to get a good look at them:
– MA138 Sets and Numbers. This is a module that is studied alongside the mathematics students course Foundations. The only reason it is lectured differently is because we don’t all fit in one room! This module explores the foundation of studying mathematics to degree level. You will look into set theory for the first time and see how we define mathematical objects. You will also explore the different concepts of infinity (it’s not a number) and countability. http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/maths/undergrad/ughandbook/ext/ma138/
– ST116 Mathematical Techniques. This is the statistics department version of MA138. It will provide you with the notation that you will you use throughout your degree. The module also introduces you to some interesting notions such as combinatorics (which you will also study in ST115). http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/statistics/modules/st1/st116/
– MA137 Mathematical Analysis. The BIG DADDY module. Feared throughout both the mathematics and statistics department, this double module will take you through the basics of dealing with sequences, infinite sums, continuity and how to prove things are true. The study of mathematics is like applied philosophy, I want you to show me things are true. I think students dislike this module because it is the first introduction to real proving. It can’t be too bad because I’ve chosen Analysis III in my second year! http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/maths/undergrad/ughandbook/ext/ma137/
– EC106 Introduction to Quantitative Economics. This is an introduction to mathematical economics and what it entails. This is also a double module and you will be exposed to the two variations of economics. In the first term, you will study microeconomics (the study of small transactions and market places) and then in second term you will study macroeconomics (the study of inflation, GDP, basically all the stuff you see in the news!) It’s a really interesting module by the fact that it is very varied. http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/economics/current/modules/ec106/
– ST115 Introduction to Probability. This is the first probability module you will study but it won’t be your last. This module is studied in second term as some of the results from Analysis are relevant in the study of statistics. You will start by studying combinatorics and simple probability distributions. Later on in the course, you will delve into combined distributions which has so many applications to real life. This course was probably my favourite of the first year. http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/statistics/modules/st1/st115/
– MA106 Linear Algebra. Quite a different module to what you will study. You will study something called vector spaces and movement between vector spaces. It sounds strange but that’s only because it’s very different to what you have already studied. The connections to analysis and probability are huge and now that I am in my second year I can see why we had to study it. For a lot of the module this wasn’t true though! http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/maths/undergrad/ughandbook/year1/ma106/
– IB104 Mathematical Programming I. This is the only Operational Research module that you will study in your first year. You will look into game theory for the first time which is used a lot in economics. You will also look at some basic algorithms such as the Simplex algorithm which you may have looked at in Decision 2 although it’s in more detail! http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/services/aro/dar/quality/modules/ib104/
What I’ve tried to do here is give you a brief look at the modules you will study. I have tried to point out how they are related to each other and the combination is powerful to study. Please look at the module handbook: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/statistics/courses/handbooks/morse/12/#first-year-examinations-MORSE. This will show you more of what I am trying to get at!
I hope next time to write about the second year, so you can get an insight to every year of your degree. Thanks for reading my first blog!
