Optimizing for STEM is a bit different for optimizing for extreme puzzles. Math Team is a corner of math (not even the main part), and not STE at all. It's a bi

Optimizing for STEM is a bit different for optimizing for extreme puzzles. Math Team is a corner of math (not even the main part), and not STE at all. It's a bit of a distraction from learning useful math for S, T, E, and even pure and applied M. One of the choices a math student has to make is whether to pursue advanced caclulus/stats/engineering math, or pure math, or contest puzzles. It's a (hard!) puzzle contest (and those are fun too, but we don't pretend that taking them to an extreme level is relevant to a career).