Did you know that UC Davis is home to over 7,000 graduate and professional students across 99 different master’s and doctoral degree programs?

When I arrived at UC Davis three years ago to start the Health Professions Advising office, what immediately struck me was not only the large number of students pursuing health careers — 5,000! — but also how much wrong information was being perpetuated about what matters to professional schools when judging student applications.

What’s a minor anyway? Think major, but smaller. It’s an optional set of classes (usually five to six upper-division classes, or about 18 to 24 units) in one academic area. If you complete a minor, you’ll find it listed on your transcript and diploma.

Minors are made up of upper-division classes that give you a focused, in-depth education aligning with your plans for the future.

Whether you’re graduating from college in June or still have several years to go — the real world is out there, so you’d better get ready. If you’ve peeked at sites like LinkedIn or CareerBuilder recently, you’ll see that careers in technology are in high demand.

Planning your life after graduation can be daunting, especially when you have grad school on the brain.

Editor’s note: This story was originally published April 11, 2017, for the UC Davis News and Information in honor of Mathematics and Statistics Awareness Month.

Math and statistics play a vital role in helping us understand the natural world and in technological innovation. Check out these numbers and stories about mathematics and statistics at UC Davis.