Sep 20, 2026  
Undergraduate Catalog 2026-2027 
    
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Undergraduate Catalog 2026-2027

MAT 083 Essential Mathematics

Credits: (6EQ)
This course focuses on math for everyday life. Topics include fluency with numbers, proportional reasoning, data interpretation, algebraic reasoning, modeling, and communicating quantitative information. Development of arithmetic skills (fractions, decimals, proportions, and percents) is incorporated throughout the course. Mathematical concepts are investigated through group problems and class discussions based on real-life contexts of citizenship, personal finances, and medical literacy. This course prepares students to take a college-level non-STEM course in mathematics, such as MAT 104 , MAT 112 , MAT 113 , or MAT 118 . Students needing MAT 114  will also need to take MAT 088.

Learning Outcomes
  1. Apply the concepts of numeracy to investigate and describe quantitative relationships and solve problems in a variety of contexts.
  2. Represent proportional relationships and solve problems that require an understanding of ratios, rates, proportions, scaling, and data.
  3. Reason using the language and structure of algebra to investigate, represent, and solve problems.
  4. Represent relationships between quantities in multiple ways (tables, equations, graphs) and solve problems that require an understanding of modeling.
  5. Communicate quantitative information in writing.