Do Programmers Need Math?

No. I'm writing this article after quite a few years of programming. No, I'm not an expert by any means nor do I profess to be however I do run a company which sells computing services and we do software development as part of that process.

Since running this company I've only recently begun to understand the gaps in my understanding of math (which are very poor, basic algebra; yes really) and how math may help solve (what I think are) more complex tasks as I consider doing a masters in computing. The reality is no, you don't need math to do programing.

But of course it's not that simple. When I say programmers don't need math, I'm simply saying that as long as you can plus, minus, and occasionally times numbers then you are covered for most programming tasks.

The reality is most of programming in business when you're solving problems for clients is understanding the problem they're trying to solve and the processes they go through to achieve a task in their business. Notice how little this has to do with mathematics. if you're good with people, able to rationalize and help people more simply explain how they do things at work, then you're well prepared to be able to begin to program a solution for their business whether this be a website, and app, or something else.

Ask yourself why you're motivated to go into programming in the first place there's nothing worse than going into a discipline purely for the assumption of financial gain. This is much easier to do right from little England I appreciate where things are genuinely not as hard, but remember if you're only going into a career motivated by finance then programming is perhaps not for to you; your missing out on finding your true career path. But of course you have to try it before you know; Learning after all can be fun and that's how a lot of us get into it in the first place...