Transitions To Advanced Mathematics

After spending two years studying at Weatherford Community College in my hometown, Weatherford TX, I chose to continue my undergraduate education at the University of Houston, in Houston TX, to study mathematics. At the time, I was aware of the joy I found in mathematics, however only soon would I truly understand this pleasure. The transition from a community college to a research university was challenging, however by managing my capabilities and quickly adjusting to the different methods of learning, I was able to fill in the gaps and adapt from a community college environment to a higher-level-thinking university. At UH, the first mathematics course that exposed proofs and logical reasoning to me was Transitions to Advanced Mathematics. This course stood vastly different from previous math courses, which were highly computational. Even after

Because I began my college career at a community college, most of my most important mathematics courses were taken the final two years of my undergraduate profession. However, I did maintain appropriate grades to assure a knowledgeable background in mathematics. A professor in the mathematics department once suggested to me taking a graduate course my senior year to experience the graduate-level atmosphere of learning. Thus, I took a graduate-level Topology course, which is offered as an Undergraduate course at some universities and offered at the Graduate level at others. Being that Abstract Algebra is a one-semester course offered at UH, I participated in an Independent Study with Dr. Mark Tomforde, a professor in the UH Mathematics Department and my supervisor, to supplement the algebra course I took as an undergraduate requirement. By doing this, I enhanced my algebra skills, not only to prepare for graduate school, but because I found the subject to be interesting and enjoyed learning about it more in