Ask HN: What to do with a pure mathematics degree?
I'm going to finish a degree in mathematics next year (in Europe). The catch: I'll be 37 when I finish. I had a change of careers later in life. I'm a bit lost on what to pursue professionally. I've looked into getting a Master's in quant/finance or AI research but I've read you need to be a young genius in order to get an interview in most of the prop shops, and for AI I don't know how feasible that path is right now for a regular guy like me. I get the impression that I need some graduate program after my degree in order to pick up programming and other "useful" skills, and to be honest, I'm kinda looking forward to it. If you are in some sort of industry that uses math or math-adjacent skills I'd love to know what would you do in my situation, any advice will be golden. Thank you! 0 comments on Hacker News.
I'm going to finish a degree in mathematics next year (in Europe). The catch: I'll be 37 when I finish. I had a change of careers later in life. I'm a bit lost on what to pursue professionally. I've looked into getting a Master's in quant/finance or AI research but I've read you need to be a young genius in order to get an interview in most of the prop shops, and for AI I don't know how feasible that path is right now for a regular guy like me. I get the impression that I need some graduate program after my degree in order to pick up programming and other "useful" skills, and to be honest, I'm kinda looking forward to it. If you are in some sort of industry that uses math or math-adjacent skills I'd love to know what would you do in my situation, any advice will be golden. Thank you!
I'm going to finish a degree in mathematics next year (in Europe). The catch: I'll be 37 when I finish. I had a change of careers later in life. I'm a bit lost on what to pursue professionally. I've looked into getting a Master's in quant/finance or AI research but I've read you need to be a young genius in order to get an interview in most of the prop shops, and for AI I don't know how feasible that path is right now for a regular guy like me. I get the impression that I need some graduate program after my degree in order to pick up programming and other "useful" skills, and to be honest, I'm kinda looking forward to it. If you are in some sort of industry that uses math or math-adjacent skills I'd love to know what would you do in my situation, any advice will be golden. Thank you! 0 comments on Hacker News.
I'm going to finish a degree in mathematics next year (in Europe). The catch: I'll be 37 when I finish. I had a change of careers later in life. I'm a bit lost on what to pursue professionally. I've looked into getting a Master's in quant/finance or AI research but I've read you need to be a young genius in order to get an interview in most of the prop shops, and for AI I don't know how feasible that path is right now for a regular guy like me. I get the impression that I need some graduate program after my degree in order to pick up programming and other "useful" skills, and to be honest, I'm kinda looking forward to it. If you are in some sort of industry that uses math or math-adjacent skills I'd love to know what would you do in my situation, any advice will be golden. Thank you!
Hacker News story: Ask HN: What to do with a pure mathematics degree?
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August 20, 2025
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