Struggling with the math in your course that you haven’t thought about since high school? Whether interpreting charts and graphs, analyzing normally distributed data, or plugging into a financial model formula, mathematics can be daunting. Even when the math sticks, it can be tricky to know when to apply one particular formula over another, how to interpret different measures of central tendency, or how to best represent an outcome. Math can be very intimidating, but with plenty of effort and the right tools and support, you’re certain to be successful with the quantitative reasoning in your courses.
If the resources you find on this site aren’t enough, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us directly and we’ll work with you one-on-one or in small groups to make sure that the mathematics in your course is not holding you back from pursuing your degree.
Wolfram Alpha, www.wolframalpha.com, allows you to type in any kind of mathematical content. You can use search words to learn about a topic and make calculations very easily. You can also ask a question in the text box and there’s a good chance that if you pose it clearly, Wolfram Alpha will translate to math and not just show you an answer, but how to get there. As an example, type in “compound interest,” and see what you get. Now, take a chance and try asking a question directly!
Khan Academy, www.khanacademy.org, is the premier site for online tutorials. Pause when you want, and don’t be afraid to review the basics with searches like “percent” or “adding fractions,” or focus on more advanced topics like compound interest or linear programming. The site is easily searchable. You will be prompted to create a free account and take a quiz to find out your “level,” but there’s no harm in skipping that! Just scroll down a little bit on the homepage to start your search without creating an account.
Annenberg Learner, www.learner.org, has excellent video resources explaining many topics in statistics among other branches of mathematics. This is a great alternative to Khan Academy that many people prefer. Just go to the website, select a discipline (mathematics,) and choose the level college/adult from the menu and explore all sorts of videos to help you understand numerous mathematical topics.
Desmos, www.desmos.com, is a fantastic online graphing calculator. Whether you’re comparing quadratic models, graphing exponential decay, or fitting regression line to data, this is easy to use and makes changing parameters and comparing graphs simple!
Free Statistics Calculators: If you don’t want to use Wolfram Alpha, there are lots of free apps for your smart phone and online if you’re looking for statistics calculators. It’s as easy as plugging in a few values or a list of numbers to calculate measures of central tendency and dispersion, binomial distribution, and all sorts of other measures. Once you understand a concept, there’s no reason to be doing these calculations by hand. Just search “free statistics calculator.” For iPhones, we suggest “statCalcLite.” As for online, Math Portal has proven to be reliable and easy to use.
Excel: For help programming in Excel, we recommend using www.youtube.com. If there’s a particular question, it’s a Youtube search away! Remember, like with all searches, best results come by tweaking your search terms until you find the specific information you’re looking for. Also, don’t be afraid to use the Excel help files in the program itself!
Math Review Made Fun: Here is something for non-expert Math lovers and the curious minded: Math Power
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The QR website provides numerous resources and links, including educational videos from within CUNY and external sources. The video below provides a quick and efficient refresher for basic algebra:
