Hey /sci/,
I studied one year maths in Austria, where we had separated degrees and all degree courses separated for mathematicians, as opposed to teachers, or engineers, or physicists. The tempo was good, the atmosphere was nice, the lecture halls were nice and mostly empty, the exercises were engaging.
Now I started over in Germany, where in the first year they put mathematicians, physicists and teachers together.
I must say I don't think the latter mode makes any sense. The lecture halls are filled to the brim, the tempo is super slow, the teacher writes out every detail of the most trivial proofs (literally writes out "such that" instead of "s.t."). I don't see any merit to this apart from saving money - and not much money is saved. But it seems common practice in many places, in the US as well?
How on earth did this come about?
Perhaps lack of space?
>>8087129
it's called multi disciplinarity.
What makes an engineer/mathematician/physicist/other good is their ability to know how it works in other fields.
Some of those people might be smart enough to see how the mentality from another field could apply to their own and innovate.
It gives engineers and physicists rigorous mathematical background.
It gives mathematicians a taste of what theoretical problems they could solve.
If things like numerical simulations and finite elements exist today, it's because some engineers or physicists were well versed in mathematics, and some mathematicians were well versed in electromagnetism or mechanical engineering or whatever.
Take it as an opportunity to becoming a better mathematician.
It might suck because it's university (I like the french system better because there are competitve exams at the end), but it's a style that can work IMO.
>>8087135
>It gives engineers and physicists rigorous mathematical background.
I wish, but it's not the case. F.e. we didn't even do a rigorous introduction to the reals. Many proofs are just hand-waved, many assumptions are out of nowhere.
I believe interdisciplinary means mathematicians attending physics lectures and vice-versa, but there is no such thing as a pure math lecture in the first year.
Why did you change after 1 year? Are you from the farm lands (i.e. not Vienna)?
>>8087157
>farm lands
No, my fellow Austrian. Private reasons, not that it matters.
>>8087156
but in France we have exactly that. Too bad it's not similar in Germany.
>>8087162
Nobody can keep up with France.
>>8087159
Nothing matters.
I also moved from Vienna to Germany for my PhD. Now I'm back, writing this from Universitätsring.
>>8087129
>in the US as well?
Uh... You attend a university, choose your concentration, and receive prescribed a list of classes that must be taken/passed before you are conferred a degree.
Sometimes, there will be education students in your classes, because they overlap. Sometimes there will be physics students in your classes because they overlap.
Most of the time, your classes will consist of a very small number of other math students.
The education students are fucking dumb as rocks.
>>8087129
I think it differs from university to university.
For example, the calculus course on the most prestigious universities are slightly different for each degree. While some universitites actually have a mathematical institution for all degrees, where every engineer and mathematician has the same Math exam in calculus. While the mathematicians just read more programming and maths.
Just because it is high grades required to enter a university usually does not mean that the quality of the education is any better, it is just more prestigious. So yeah, it might be that certain german university that are saving money , not the state.
>>8087606
Forgot to mention that I am Swedish.
