Nurses
In the UK, every pre-registration nursing programme must include a numeracy assessment, with medicines calculations, passed with a score of 100 percent.
See the mathMath at work
From nurses to pilots, people do quick math at work every day. See the everyday math in 11 jobs, try a sum from each, and learn the skills behind it.
Every job has its numbers. Fancy trying a chef’s sum? Or a pilot’s?
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Pharmacy technicians
Days supply is a division sum: 60 tablets, one taken twice a day, last 30 days.
See the mathParamedics
In a small Australian pilot study, 20 experienced paramedics answered 12 drug and math questions with no calculator and no warning; the average was 72%.
See the mathChefs and bakers
Scaling a recipe from 4 servings to 10 is a times 2.5 sum, and O*NET lists adapting ingredient quantities as a core task for bakers.
See the mathWorking with money
Young street sellers in Brazil got sums right in real sales that they found harder when the same numbers came as school-style problems.
See the mathElectricians
The aptitude test for IBEW and NECA electrical apprenticeships includes an algebra test, and calculators are not allowed, not even a calculator watch.
See the mathBuilding trades
One researcher spent six months working as an apprentice carpenter in Cape Town just to study the math carpenters do.
See the mathCNC machinists
The top-rated task on O*NET's list for machinists is calculating dimensions or tolerances, using micrometers and calipers.
See the mathPilots
The FAA's Instrument Procedures Handbook gives pilots quick rules of thumb: for a three degree descent, multiply groundspeed by 5 to get feet per minute.
See the mathPrimary teachers
In Ontario, new teachers sit a math test, and some of its questions are done without a calculator.
See the mathMilitary recruits
The ASVAB bans calculators on purpose: the official site says hand calculations may be needed on the job.
See the mathYour daily workout is waiting
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