In order to be prepared for the first year courses, we expect our incoming Ph.D. students to have completed a multivariate calculus course and a matrix algebra (or linear algebra) course prior to enrollment. The multivariate calculus course is usually the third in the engineering calculus sequence. If you have already completed these courses, or their equivalent, in your previous undergraduate or graduate coursework, you need not retake them.
The University of Tennessee's Math Department offers these courses. Math 141 and Math 142 are the engineering and physical sciences versions of Calculus I and II, respectively. Math 241 is Multivariate Calculus, and has Math 141 and 142 as prerequisites. Math 251 is Matrix Algebra I, and it also has Math 141 and 142 as prerequisites.
If you were a business student here, you probably took Math 123 and 125. These courses are not as rigorous as Math 141 and 142, and they probably did not give you the background to take Math 241 or 251. That means you probably will have to take Math 142, and perhaps 141 as well. However, you should check with the Math Department and the course instructor to see if your background is adequate to bypass Math 141 or 142.
Math 141, 142, and 241 were all offered at U.T. during the full summer session in 2003. Math 251 was offered during the first summer session in 2003. If scheduling in future years is like this year, then you could take Multivariate and Matrix Algebra I during the summer prior to enrolling. You would need to have completed the equivalent of Calculus I and II before coming to campus. Note also, our assistantships, if you receive one, all begin in the Fall. You would not be eligible for tuition waiver for summer classes before your first year. Because of this, most of our out-of-town students needing these prerequisites have chosen to take them at a local college before moving to Knoxville.