WHat are the options for a math Ph.d besides teaching?

[2k5 yzf-r1]

WHat are the options for a math Ph.D. besides teaching??

Hi, I will be getting my BS in pure math this spring and I need some advice. I breezed through the undergrad math curriculum in 3 years and this year I am taking real analysis and analytic function theory which are 600 level (master level) classes at my shool. All of my professors have full confidence that I could get a Ph.D. in math. However, I have no interest in being a teacher at any level. My question has a couple parts

1. What jobs are out there for math Ph.D. that use high level math? I am not looking to go all the way just to do someone taxes or bookeeping etc.

2. What is the realistic starting salary for a math ph.d? is $55,000 a pipe dream?

3. Will my age hinder or limit my chances/opportunities at landing a good job? I got a late start at college because I did 6 years in the military before I started school. So that will put me at 35 if I go until I get a ph.d

I am using $55,000 for starting salary because if I take my BS and go back into the military I would be an officer and I would start out at $51k. By the time I get a ph.d I could already be making $72k in the military just by getting promoted twice.

If I had to choose between a math job or military officer I would choose the math job over the military, but not by much. I like them both a lot and If I can make a good living in the math field then I will do it. If not, then I only have to work 14 more years in the military and I then I can retire and military retirement is good.

any inputs would be appreciated, sorry for the long post

 

[fourier jr]

copy/paste from another thread:

One of my uncles did a math degree & he got a job as a programmer, using the stuff he learned in just 2 courses he took as part of his degree. now he's some sort of human resources manager for the BC ministry of agriculture & land (formerly min of forests) who hires programmers. he says he NEVER (i guess 1% of the time...) hires computer science graduates to do programming jobs. that's because comp sci students only know how to program; they have nothing that they can apply to computers or programming. it's like he says "write up a program that will give me the area of a circle" & the comp sci person will think "well geez i know all about programming & coding but wtf how do i find the area of a circle?" it's not really that simple (might be a program to solve a pde numerically, etc) but you get the idea. it would be much easier for a math student who knows a bit about programming to pick up some more programming than it would be for a comp sci person to pick up more partial differential equations, stats, etc. basically what you'd want to say in a cover letter if you were applying for a job like that you'd say "hey maybe I'm not the best at coding but LOOK AT ALL THIS MATH I CAN APPLY!" that would be groups, (finite) fields, combinatorics, linear algebra, statistics, number theory, probability...
canada's communications security establishment is also hiring cryptographers who would need to know all that stuff also.
it was that same uncle who gave me the heads-up about a "marine security analyst" job opening with transport Canada. it involves a lot of collection of information/intelligence, analysis, and synthesis of a report/briefing/presentation. the ad for the job said we have to send a cover letter explainng exactly why we meet ALL the requirements for the job & i didn't do one because i couldn't find where to send it to (couldn't find an email or mailing address) but they sent me an email a couple weeks ago. since this would be my first real job since graduating & i didn't do coop all I've got going for me is my math degree & the skills i picked up while studying for it. my brother thinks they must be really interested because they overlooked my little omission in my application. they sent me a .ppt attachment with that email that was riddled with inconsistencies, grammatical errors, a spelling mistake, etc also. as it turns out, being able to find mistakes in abstract math texts is actually useful. if one can do that, editing plain english is so much easier. it's like math gives someone superhuman attention to detail due to its abstractness. if i get an interview i'll try to bring that up since the job involves a lots of editing & writing & they could use someone with a good eye for that. i'll try to not be a smartass about it. one of my other uncles is an environmental engineer who works in calgary; he said someone with a math background would be well-suited for a tech writer job also.

try looking at monster.com (or .ca) & other sites with job listings. there are a lot out there. that marine security analyst job will pay CDN$55,000-59,000 + 100% medical & dental (since it's gov't) and the ad said they wanted someone with experience (& maybe only high school) or an acceptable level of education. I would think someone with a PhD in math could potentially do a lot better than that. If your programming skills are really good I saw job listings for experienced Java programmers with starting salaries in the range of CDN$70,000-$85,000 & also nobody in town would know the kind of math that you would be able to apply to computers. use your imagination when it comes to jobs involving math skills. there are so many degrees that have math requirements; a math person could do all of them.

 

[1800bigk]

I take from your military past that you are not against government work. The government hires math ph.d's in numerous areas, they start ph.d's out at GS-11 paygrade which is 50 to 55k per year depending on area