High school students' perceptions on the relevance of mathematics in higher education

Mathematics plays a central role in the STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) and also in a large number of other subjects. However, many students start their university studies with inadequate expectations regarding the needed mathematics. The present paper reports on a study investigating N=984 German high school students’ perceptions of the relevance of mathematics for university studies by contrasting the subjects economics, education, medicine, and physics. Both, students’ perception of the relevance of mathematics in general as well as of specific required mathematical aspects were assessed for the different subjects. The results indicate that many high school students underestimate the relevance of mathematics, especially in education studies.