How to Apply to Mathematics at Case Western Reserve University: A Shared Department of Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, and Statistics, Applying to the University and Declaring the Major by the Second Semester, for Domestic, International (Including Chinese) and Transfer Applicants

Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is in Cleveland, Ohio. Undergraduate mathematics is taught by the Department of Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, and Statistics (MAMS), which the Bulletin lists under the College of Arts and Sciences. Here is what you need to know to apply, based on the 2026-2027 General Bulletin, the department’s website and the Office of Undergraduate Admission, organised for US domestic applicants, international applicants and applicants from China, followed by transfer students. Computer science is not covered here (this site has a separate guide), and the statistics degrees in the same department are only mentioned in section 1.

1. Degrees

• Undergraduate degrees in the department: the Bulletin lists a BA or BS in Mathematics, a BS in Applied Mathematics, a BA or BS in Statistics, and, with the Department of Physics, a joint BS in Mathematics and Physics. Every degree needs at least 120 credit hours and is built on a four-course sequence in calculus and differential equations.
• BA in Mathematics: at least 41 credit hours of mathematics: MATH 121, 122, 223 and 224 (calculus and differential equations), MATH 307 linear algebra, 308 abstract algebra, 321 and 322 analysis, 324 complex analysis, and 12 credit hours of technical electives at the 300 level or above. The Bulletin says the BA has the same focus on theory and the same core 300-level courses as the BS but fewer technical electives and no extra science requirement, which suits a second major, a double major with another BA, or a wider choice of non-math courses; students interested in graduate study in mathematics are encouraged to pursue the BS.
• BS in Mathematics: at least 50 credit hours of mathematics and at least 17 in basic science. The same nine mathematics courses, plus four technical electives (12 credit hours) and three MATH or STAT courses at the 300 level or above (9 credit hours); the science courses are PHYS 121, 122 and 221 plus a two-course sequence in astronomy, chemistry or earth science (6 to 8 credit hours). Total credit hours 67 to 69.
• BS in Applied Mathematics: also at least 50 credit hours and 17 in basic science. The Bulletin says the core is linear algebra and analysis, with computing and probability replacing abstract algebra and complex analysis, and technical electives include partial differential equations, mathematical modeling and applied probability.
• Other: there is a mathematics minor (17 credit hours of MATH courses, at least 6 at the 300 level or above). The department FAQ says the Capstone and department seminar are SAGES requirements, not MAMS requirements. Integrated BS/MS options are in section 9.
• Teacher licensure: the Bulletin says students admitted before fall 2024 can declare a secondary major in Teacher Education and prepare for licensure for grades 7 to 12 in mathematics; the arrangement for later entrants is not stated on the pages read.

2. Admission: you apply to the university and declare the major after enrolling

• When you apply: you apply to the university through the Common App or Coalition with Scoir. The admission pages read do not describe a separate admission line or extra materials for mathematics; Admissions says there is no minimum GPA or test score and applications are reviewed holistically.
• Declaring the major: the Bulletin says first-year students who enter in the fall may begin declaring on 1 October (on 1 March if they enter in the spring), and all students must declare a major in their second semester (by 1 March for fall entrants, by 1 October for spring entrants) or face a registration hold. A declaration form is signed by the student, the advisor and the major’s academic representative and submitted to the Undergraduate Advising Support Office. Students may change majors later.
• Where to declare in the department: the department FAQ names an academic representative for each program (mathematics: Prof. Butler; applied math and math and physics: Prof. Contenza; statistics: Prof. Fitzgibbon or Prof. Williamson; check the website for the current names), and says an advisor is assigned after you declare. The pages read state no GPA requirement or enrollment cap.
• Moving into math from inside CWRU: current students use the same declaration or change form; no other conditions are stated.
• Honors: a separate departmental honors program is not described on the pages read.

3. Prerequisites

• High school courses: Admissions requires at least 4 years of English, 3 of math, 3 of science (2 of them laboratory science), 3 of social studies and 2 of foreign language, and recommends an additional year of math and laboratory science for those interested in engineering or the sciences. Your transcript is evaluated against your own school’s curriculum.
• Where calculus starts: the Bulletin lists as prerequisites for MATH 121 either MATH 120 (precalculus), a score of 30 on the mathematics diagnostic test, or exemption from the diagnostic test; recommended preparation is three and a half years of high school mathematics. The department teaches two calculus tracks, MATH 121/122 for science and engineering and MATH 125/126 for the life, managerial and social sciences, and the Bulletin advises students who plan more than two semesters of math to take MATH 121.
• AP credit (entering 2026-27): according to the Bulletin’s table, AP Calculus AB with a 5 earns 4 credit hours (MATH 121) with MATH 122 or 126 recommended next; Calculus BC with a 5 earns 8 credit hours (MATH 121 and 122) with MATH 223 as the placement; BC with an AB subscore of 5 earns 4 credit hours (MATH 121); AP Statistics with a 5 earns 3 credit hours (STAT 201); AP Precalculus earns no credit.
• IB credit: Mathematics HL with a 5, 6 or 7 earns 7 credit hours (MATH 121 and MATH 100-TR), with MATH 122 or 126 recommended next. For A-Levels and similar exams, the Bulletin says departments decide the criteria; the mathematics criteria are not listed on the pages read.
• Proficiency exams: the department offers proficiency exams for MATH 121, 122, 125, 126, 223 and 224, twice a year before the fall and spring semesters on a schedule set by the Office of Undergraduate Studies; one attempt only; you must perform at about a C level (around 70%), and the credit shows as PR and does not count toward GPA. No sample exams are provided.
• Math competitions: the pages read do not say how competitions are viewed in admission.

4. Deadlines and materials (first-year)

• Deadlines (the page shows no year, so check that they apply to fall 2027 entry): Early Action 1 November (financial aid documents 15 November, decisions 19 December, enroll by 1 May); Early Decision I (binding) 1 November (decisions 5 December, enroll by 12 December); Early Decision II 15 January (decisions 6 February, enroll within a week of admission); Regular Decision 15 January (aid documents 1 February, decisions 20 March, enroll by 1 May); spring entry 15 November. The Pre-Professional Scholars Program, conditional admission to CWRU’s medical or dental school, is due 1 December.
• How to apply and fee: Common App or Coalition with Scoir; the application fee is $75, and fee waivers are available.
• Materials: official high school transcript, School Report, counselor recommendation, two teacher recommendations and an essay. A math teacher’s letter is not requested. The Arts Supplement is required for music majors and is not needed for mathematics.
• Testing: CWRU is test optional for all of its 100+ programs; you choose at the time of application whether to send SAT or ACT scores and can change your mind until two weeks before the decision release date. CWRU superscores. The application tips page gives middle 50% figures for the class of 2025: SAT total 1420 to 1510, ACT composite 32 to 35, unweighted GPA 3.6 to 4.0, with 42% test optional.
• Extra materials: applicants may add through the portal extra letters of recommendation, a resume, research abstracts, AP scores (including 3s) or predicted IB results; these are optional.

5. US domestic applicants

• Tuition: CWRU is private, and its cost page lists one tuition rate with no in-state/out-of-state split. For 2026-2027, tuition is $71,410; housing $11,688, meal plan $8,600, fees $696, matriculation fee $760, books $1,200, personal expenses $1,350, transportation variable; the estimated total is $95,704 for a residential student and $80,364 for a commuter. The site adds a transportation allowance of up to $2,000 depending on home state. Most students do not pay the full cost.
• Aid: the site says CWRU meets 100% of demonstrated need for admitted students with a combination of scholarships, grants, work-study and loans; US citizens and permanent residents file the FAFSA and the CSS Profile.
• Scholarships: all first-year applicants are automatically considered for merit scholarships; US citizens and permanent residents are considered automatically for awards including the University Scholarship and the Michelson-Morley STEM Scholarship (for students planning to major in science, technology, engineering or mathematics). Separate scholarship competitions need an essay; the A.W. Smith Innovation Scholarship (two tuition awards) is open to first-year applicants in engineering, the physical sciences and mathematics who have shown exceptional hands-on project achievement. A complete scholarship application is due 15 February.
• Residency preference or guaranteed admission: not stated on the pages read; see the scholarships page for awards such as the Austin E. Knowlton fund for Ohio students.

6. International applicants

• Process: international applicants follow the same deadlines and process as domestic applicants, and academic records and recommendations not in English need English translations. About 20% of undergraduates are citizens of other countries.
• English: if your first language is not English, submit scores through the testing agency or self-report them in the applicant portal after you apply; enrolling students confirm with official scores. Minimums: Duolingo 115, IELTS 7, PTE Academic 61, TOEFL iBT (including Home Edition) 4.5 for exams taken on or after 21 January 2026 (for exams on or before 20 January 2026, 90 internet-based or 577 paper-based).
• Waiver: any one of these waives the requirement automatically: two years in a school with English as the language of instruction by graduation; SAT evidence-based reading and writing 630 or higher; ACT English 26 or higher.
• Finances: non-US residents seeking aid file the CSS Profile only (code 1105). The site says financial aid is available to international students and more than 80% of students receive some assistance.
• Scholarships: the automatic awards listed state US citizens and permanent residents; for the scholarship competitions, the site says international students can participate unless otherwise noted. Whether international students are considered for the automatic merit awards is not stated on the pages read, so ask Admission.

7. Applicants from China

• Gaokao: the admission pages read do not say how Gaokao results are used and give no China-specific guidance; this is not published there, so contact the Office of Undergraduate Admission.
• Transcripts and other records: no China-specific requirements are published on the pages read; the rules for all international applicants are in section 6 (English translations of non-English records and recommendations, and the English proficiency rules).
• International curricula: students in IB, AP or A-Level programs can use the credit rules in section 3.

8. Costs, scholarships, research and outcomes

• Costs: see section 5.
• Department support and research: the pages read list no department-specific scholarships. The Capstone (MATH 352, 3 credit hours) has students do theoretical, experimental or teaching research under a Capstone Advisor, with a written report and a public presentation such as the MAMS Capstone Symposium; the FAQ suggests looking for an advisor in the spring of the third year. The department’s undergraduate resource page links to NSF REU sites in the mathematical sciences and American Mathematical Society summer research listings, and lists supplemental instruction and the Math Tutoring Center.
• Outcomes: the Bulletin says individuals with degrees in mathematics enjoy excellent employment prospects; a bachelor’s degree in mathematics or applied mathematics is a strong background for graduate school in many areas (including computer science, medicine and law) or for a position in the private sector, and a PhD is usually necessary for college teaching and research. The department’s “why major in math” page names engineering and computer companies, banking, science and financial consulting firms, and biomedical and imaging enterprises as recruiters. The pages print no employment counts or salary data.

9. Integrated BS/MS and transfer students

• Integrated BS/MS: the department says BS students in mathematics, applied mathematics and statistics can apply after 75 semester hours and before senior status (90 hours), usually in the sixth semester, with at least two semesters of BS requirements remaining; in the senior year they can take up to nine hours of graduate courses (400 level and above) that count toward both degrees. A different department page (graduate admission) says the combined bachelor’s/master’s application fee is waived for current CWRU students and that students should have completed at least 60 credit hours with at least one semester left; the two pages give different credit figures, so check the latest page and your advisor.
• Who counts as a transfer student: anyone who has graduated from high school (or the equivalent) and enrolled in college courses, whether or not credit was earned; Admission may at its discretion treat a transfer-eligible applicant as a first-year applicant.
• Materials: Common App or Coalition application, the $75 fee (waivers available), official transcripts from every college attended, a recommendation from a college instructor, and a Transfer College Report showing good standing and eligibility to return to the last college attended. The official high school transcript is waived for those who will have graduated two years before entry and will hold an associate degree, or have 45 credit hours at the time of application. Testing is optional. The pages read state no GPA threshold and no calculus or linear algebra requirement for mathematics.
• Deadlines (no year shown, so check): fall Early Plan 15 March; fall 3/2 Engineering 15 February; fall Regular Plan 1 July; spring 15 November (later applications on a space-available basis).
• Credit transfer: Admission says credit may be awarded for eligible courses with a C or better at an accredited institution, evaluated after admission and receipt of the final transcript. The Bulletin says credit is awarded for courses equivalent or comparable to CWRU courses with a C or better, and degrees need at least 60 credit hours earned at CWRU. Transfer students may begin declaring their major at the start of their first semester and must declare by their second.
• The department’s transfer credit policy: that page is for students already at CWRU who want to take a course elsewhere, not for transfer admission: approval is needed in advance, the outside course should cover about 80% of the same material with roughly the same hours, the department does not accept online courses for transfer credit, and the Office of Undergraduate Studies caps domestic off-campus credit at 15 credit hours.

Checklist

US domestic applicants:

• Apply by 1 November (Early Action or Early Decision I) or 15 January (Early Decision II and Regular) through the Common App or Coalition; testing is optional; $75 fee
• For scholarship competitions, submit the scholarship application by 15 February; for aid, file the FAFSA and CSS Profile

International applicants (including China):

• After applying, submit English scores: IELTS 7, TOEFL 4.5 (new scale), Duolingo 115 or PTE 61, or meet a waiver condition; translate records and recommendations into English
• If you need aid, file the CSS Profile only; ask Admission how the Gaokao is used

After entry:

• Start calculus by the diagnostic test, AP/IB credit or a proficiency exam; declare the major by the second semester

Transfer students:

• 15 March (fall Early Plan), 1 July (fall Regular) or 15 November (spring); transcripts from all colleges and a college instructor’s recommendation

Sources: Case Western Reserve University, Admission: deadlines and requirements; First-year applicants; Application tips; Test policy; International applicants; Transfer applicants; Tuition and costs; Scholarships; 2026-27 General Bulletin: Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, and Statistics; Mathematics BA; Mathematics BS; Applied Mathematics BS; Bulletin: academic policies; AP/IB credit equivalencies; Department FAQ; Department proficiency exams; Department transfer credit policy; Department integrated BS/MS; Department: why major in math; Department: undergraduate resources. The admission deadlines page shows no year, so check that the dates apply to fall 2027 entry; costs are for 2026-27. See CWRU’s website for the latest.