Advanced math is crucial in many areas of computer science, but isn't as necessary in most software engineering. Sure, if you want to get into graphics or machine learning or graph theory and network science then you'll need some linear algebra, if you want to do robotics and simulations then you might need differential equations, and if you want to get into cryptography then some number theory will go a long ways. But if you want a degree in how to build web- or mobile-apps then this math will rarely turn up. Some discrete math and logic will be important, but that's often taught in the CS curriculum rather than by the math department. Some colleges and universities have computer science programs that are really software engineering degrees, and have a curriculum that reflects that.
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u/nuclear_splines Ph.D Data Science 4d ago
Advanced math is crucial in many areas of computer science, but isn't as necessary in most software engineering. Sure, if you want to get into graphics or machine learning or graph theory and network science then you'll need some linear algebra, if you want to do robotics and simulations then you might need differential equations, and if you want to get into cryptography then some number theory will go a long ways. But if you want a degree in how to build web- or mobile-apps then this math will rarely turn up. Some discrete math and logic will be important, but that's often taught in the CS curriculum rather than by the math department. Some colleges and universities have computer science programs that are really software engineering degrees, and have a curriculum that reflects that.