The mathematical science department had the lowest average undergraduate grade point average for the spring 2003 term at 2.007, according to an NIU Institutional Research Report. The average undergraduate GPA for chemistry students was the second lowest, at 2.118, according to the same report.

William Blair, mathematical science department chair, said there are reasons why math is always toward the bottom of the pack.

“Math is very unforgiving,” Blair said. “The commitment comes in several different forms. You have to stay with your homework day in and day out. It’s very easy to fall behind.”

Blair also said some students often come into classes without proper preparation.

“A lot of times there are gaps of time between the class they’re taking and the prerequisite they took for the class,” he said.

Dave Rusin, director of undergraduate mathematical studies, agreed with Blair. He said professors sometimes advise students to retake previous courses if they are not performing well in the current course.

“We’d rather more students withdraw from classes than to [do poorly] in them,” he said.

Rusin says that students do not always take this advice, which causes GPAs in the department to fall.

He also said general education requirements force a lot of students with no interest in math to take the lower-level math courses. In the 100- and 200-level classes, students tend to have average GPAs below 2.00. The 400-level courses have a higher GPA, at about 3.00.

Rusin said the numbers are in line with other universities’ math departments.

“Northern, at least the last time I checked, is a little better than most schools,” he said. “It’s just that math is an abstract subject. A lot of times students just don’t know what they’re getting into.”

On the other end of things, the College of Education had an average undergraduate GPA of 3.39, the highest of any NIU college. Every department within it averaged above 3.00, with early childhood education classes averaging the highest at 3.847.

“We have great students. They have a goal to become a teacher and they go for it,” said Christine Sorensen, dean of the College of Education. “We have a good reputation in the region, and there is strong competition to get into the program. We sometimes have to turn down students with 3.00 or higher GPAs.”