The Math and Computer Science Support Center, run by the Department of Mathematics, offers a variety of types of assistance to students during day and evening hours in fall, spring, and summer semesters. The following is a brief outline of the programs that are available. Detailed schedules are published at the start of each semester and are available from the Math/CS Support Center Office in Fenton 636.
Coursework Help
Staffing
Assistance is provided by caring adjunct faculty and upper-level undergraduate and graduate students, selected for their mathematical and/or computer programming skills and teaching ability.
Drop-In Math Help Sessions
Math Help offers individual and small group tutoring, on a drop-in basis, for course content in all freshmen level mathematics courses. This is a good place to ask questions about daily homework and lectures before questions become problems.
Students may drop in as often as needed. The center, located in Fenton 636, is open more than 45 hours each week, divided between day and evening hours. The center is open and manned from the first week of classes through final exams. Students may visit the center whenever it is open, whether they are having severe difficulty, need just a little bit of help, or just want a friendly place in which to do their math homework.
One-on-One Help by Appointment
In addition to our drop-in help, The Math/C.S. Support Center offers a limited amount of one-on-one tuutorial help in course content for all freshmen level mathematics courses. Tutors will answer questions about material presented in your class, go over problems similar to assigned homework, review for exams, and work on strategies for studying math. Tutoring sessions will be tailored to the needs of the student.
Unlike the drop-in math help program, students participating in this service are guaranteed a 1-1 appointment for a specified amount of time. Our services are always free of charge, and those who register for one-on-one help can also take advantage of the drop- in services offered by the Center.
Computer Science Help
Computer science help is offered for freshmen level (and select upper level) computer science courses. Schedules are distributed each semester detailing the types of tutoring that are available for each course, but depending on the semester and the course, there two types of tutoring available:
- Drop-in Computer Science Tutoring is offered in the Fenton building (in either Fenton 234 or Fenton 431) and is manned by undergraduate students, graduate students and adjunct faculty members. Students can stop by and ask specific questions or start working on their programs and, if they get stuck, a tutor is there to help them.
- By-Appointment Computer Science Tutoring is offered in the Fenton computer lab (Fenton 234). Students should sign up in advance in the Math/CS Support Center (Fenton 636) during registration hours (listed outside the MSC each semester), by calling (617) 973-5350 or by emailing waldman@mcs.suffolk.edu. (Calls or emails left outside the hours of 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. will be answered the next business day.) Appointments are in half-hour intervals and students can sign up for multiple appointments per week.
MATHSHOP
MATHSHOP is a non-credit, full-semester workshop, designed for students who need substantial review before starting MATH 104 or 121. Similar to a course, MATHSHOP meets three hours per week, throughout the semester.
Each MATHSHOP section systematically covers the fundamentals of mathematics such as:
- Arithmetic with signed numbers
- Fractions
- Decimals
- Percentages
- Basic algebra
- Solving equations.
