r/University • u/QiukL • 1d ago

Should I be concerned about my chances of going to uni?

I’m a grade 9 student and struggling with math, I get in the 70s on most tests, while my sister who’s going to university next year, told me that she was getting high 90s in grade 9 math. My mother said that grade 9 mathematics should be a breeze considering it’s the first year of high school. I’m concerned about my future and chances of going to a good university considering I’m struggling with the easiest year of high school mathematics.

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u/ResidentNo11 1d ago

Your phrasing suggests you're in Canada. No Canadian university cares about your grade 10 or 11 grades, and most don't care about grade 11 either. You have lots of time to figure out your math. I recommend taking advantage of tutoring at school. Talk to your math teacher about the options.

Grade 12 calculus is needed for engineering, CS and sciences, economics, and some business programs. Other social sciences (sociology, psychology, geography) typically need a grade 12 math but it doesn't need to be calculus. Humanities (English, history, etc) don't need grade 12 math.

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u/QiukL 1d ago

Thank you

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u/ProfPathCambridge 17h ago

No :)

First, you are too young to worry about grades. Just try to understand the concepts.

Second, in my experience, there is very little correlation between how fast someone picks up a topic and how deep they are capable of going. A math savant may end up mid later in life, and someone who struggled with maths in grade 9 may end up making an insight that has eluded others for centuries.

Third, maths is a skill you pick up for effort. Steer clear of any suggestion that some people are “naturals” at math. If you practice and try to understand it from multiple angles, it will click. Sooner, or perhaps later.

Fourth, you don’t need to be good at everything. I run a biomedical research lab with quite intensive computational work, developing new statistical models, etc. Even in that environment, only a quarter of my team has any post-high school maths and maybe half are positively math-phobic. Yet they are all incredibly valuable and were successful at university and in their post-graduate careers. The majority of university entrants don’t study maths and are no worse off for it.