How Much Math Does Computer Science Require?

Learning a new skill can take time and effort. If that new skill comes with unfamiliar grounds, then it becomes even harder. Take computer science, for example. Computer science is a rather interesting field that teaches the user how computers work. But, it is not just a simple explanation, but a deep dive into the hearts of a computer, to see how they operate and what the hardware does.

Computer science is a huge topic and anybody wanting to learn it will need to deal with mathematics. How much mathematics? It depends, but typically, a lot.

Why So Much Mathematics?

Computers use mathematics to calculate and do basically everything you tell them to do. Computer science teaches how computers work and operate and in order to understand them, you need to understand the mathematics behind the processes and logic.

In order to teach a computer to do anything, one must be able to make use of the equations, formulas and logic behind the actions.

From simple calculations to autonomous vehicles, there is a need to understand the math in order to be able to work in the deep low end of computing.

What Types of Math Should You Expect?

If you go to a university, there will be many math courses to take, but the basic ones revolve around algebra, statistics, calculus and discrete mathematics. All of these are necessary to understand the logic of how a computer works. 

That would give you a very basic understanding of how a computer operates, the logic and the languages and structures that are in use. 

There might be more advanced mathematics the deeper you go or the more specialized you get, but at that point, you should be familiar with the required math so that it shouldn’t present an issue.

Don’t Skip on the Math

If you want to learn computer science, do not skip math, it is very important. If you want to skip math, then you might want to consider learning a programming language, rather than investing into computer science. The closer you get to the hardware, the more you have to deal with numbers and logic. 

A computer science student and later, expert, need math to make it work. It is your friend, in this case.

Computer science requires lots of mathematics so be ready to study and be methodical about it. Computers use mathematics to operate so understanding mathematics means being a step closer to understanding computers.