General Studies: Mathematics Concentration

Overview

General Studies provides you the flexibility to pursue an affordable transfer pathway. You can also build a customization associates degree using a certificate to help with career advancement.

The General Studies programs provides you the option to:

• Combine a certificate with additional coursework to obtain an Associate’s degree when one is not available
• Complete an Associate’s degree to transfer to programs not aligned with other degrees at RVCC
• Build a program that is not available at RVCC with existing courses

Why RVCC?

This program provides you an affordable transfer pathway that has the flexibility to meet the needs of many programs. You can also complete as associates degree that is built around a certificate that can help with career advancement.

Career Options

 A degree in general studies allows a student to start a career in any of the following: marketing, business, technology, math, science, communications, media, journalism

Related Degrees

Liberal Arts Degree

The mission of the General Studies program is to prepare students for successful lifelong learning by engaging them in a broadly applicable interdisciplinary degree program.

The goal of the General Studies program at River Valley is to provide students with a flexible schedule to cater to students with broad interests and to prepare students for transfer opportunities at 4 year colleges.

Upon successful completion of this program, graduates will be prepared to:

1. Apply mathematical models and concepts to problems and situations.
2. Think critically to solve problems, evaluate information, and interpret data.
3. Use scientific methods in and out of the laboratory.
4. Use oral and written English to communicate clearly and effectively.
5. Explore diverse ideas to evaluate the effect of historical trends, events, institutions, and social systems on the development of humankind.
6. Demonstrate scientific thought both quantitatively and qualitatively by learning to recognize and formulate questions for analysis of human and technical problems.
7. Explore academic discipline options for transfer to 4 year colleges.

Why Mathematics at RVCC

• Small Class Sizes
• Individualized Support and Free Drop-in Tutoring
• Experienced and Accomplished Faculty Focused on Teaching and Student Learning
• Technology – All Courses in Computer Labs with Ability for Students to Connect to Projectors and Interact with Dynamic Software
• Focused on Active Learning

Program Goals (for mathematics focus)

• Through a cohesive program of study provide a rigorous and diverse curriculum, based upon national standards, that stresses the connections between the STEM majors
• Provide a pathway of transfer to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) majors at four-year institutions
• Offer students a mathematics and science background that allows for a variety of career opportunities in related fields

Sample Degree Major Courses for General Studies Mathematics Focus

Projects

All Students complete projects in mathematics classes connected to their passions and interests. Some recent examples include:

• Experiments to examine bacterial logistic growth patterns and isolate growth phase shifts
• Examining sound pressure level decay by building, testing, and using distributed mode loudspeakers
• Analyzing publicly available data to look for relationships between the strengths of hurricanes and their points of origin
• Looking at the science behind intoxication and how alcohol is processed by the body
• Examining the Brachistochrone problem; and
• Calculating avalanche runout distance in Tukerman Ravine on Mount Washington, NH.

General Studies is an open enrollment program. This means we accept students once they are accepted to River Valley; no requirements necessary. At RVCC, we believe all students should be able to complete a degree and be able to transfer or start their career as smoothly as possible.

If you have any questions about General Studies, please do not hesitate to request information or reach out to the advisors.