What math skills would one need to enter the business field?
ben_mercer91 asked:
I am considering a career path to follow and I was just wondering. By business field I mean accountant, economist, stock broker and the like. I am decent in math, I got a B in both Algebra and Geometry, but I still get mildly confused. What math skills are needed for these jobs? Do I just need to know business math like basic addition, subtraction and those with knowing interest as well? or do I need to know a lot more. All help is appreciated.
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I am considering a career path to follow and I was just wondering. By business field I mean accountant, economist, stock broker and the like. I am decent in math, I got a B in both Algebra and Geometry, but I still get mildly confused. What math skills are needed for these jobs? Do I just need to know business math like basic addition, subtraction and those with knowing interest as well? or do I need to know a lot more. All help is appreciated.
February 24th, 2009 at 11:47 pm
Honestly, most of it for stock brokers is computerized. Same goes for accountant, though economist is a completely different issue (lets not even get into that).
Most of what goes into those jobs is not necessarily math skills, but market skills. Do you know your prime and subprime markets? How well do you know the stock business? Its not math in the end that makes the career.
February 26th, 2009 at 3:17 am
If you want to be an economist, you’ll need to have at least a good understanding of basic calculus as well as really good algebra and statistics skills.
If you want to be an accountant, you’ll just need algebra.
If you want to pursue an MBA for a broad range of business skills, you’ll need basic calculus, algebra, and good statistics skills.
If you go into finance you may be required to be able to do some complex financial modeling. Lots of algebra.
February 28th, 2009 at 10:04 pm
A high GMAT test score is important for gaining admission to top business schools. The GMAT exam has one full section on Math. This Quantitative section is hardest hurdle for most of the students. One is either weak in Math or have forgotten it over the years. The areas tested in the test include Arithmetic (Percent, Ration, Numbers, Average) Algebra (Equations, Inequalities) and Geometry (Angles & Triangles, Quadrilaterals, Circles, Solid, Coordinate). One of the best places to prepare for GMAT math is They are the experts in the area. Their methods are powerful and subscription plans are afforable. Then there are others in the market such as Kaplan, Princeton, Manhattan, Veritas etc. However they do everything (hence weak on Math) and can be very very expensive. However this is my personal opinion based on my experience. Not all may agree with me.
I suggest you to check their samples at
Good luck
Thanks
Scott
March 2nd, 2009 at 8:50 pm
It’s not the math, per se. It’s the dedication to accuracy of basic math skills. One misplaced decimal point will cost a company MILLIONS. Transposed numbers will cost a company MILLIONS. Paying attention to the basics has a lot to do with business success.
Also, you need to brush up on your people skills. There are a lot of ‘misconceptions’ about numbers people. You need to be aware of this. You can use this to your advantage, but beware of the ‘misconceptions’ when it comes to promotions.
Never hurts to brush up on your basic business publications. WSJ or INC or BE or Forbes.
Remember: Algebra and Geometry are good for discipline. However, they are not ‘key’ to business understanding. The basics always serve one well. It’s kind of like the chess/checkers analysis: It never hurts to know both. You don’t know if you’ll be interviewing over a cracker barrell or a boardroom table. You need the common sense that goes with chess and checkers.