<jabberwocky><div class="vbmenu_control"><a href="jabberwocky:;" onClick="newWindow=window.open('','usenetCode','toolbar=no,location=no, scrollbars=yes,resizable=yes,status=no,width=650,height=400'); newWindow.document.write('<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>Usenet ASCII</TITLE></HEAD><BODY topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 BGCOLOR=#F1F1F1><table border=0 width=625><td bgcolor=midnightblue><font color=#F1F1F1>This Usenet message\'s original ASCII form: </font></td></tr><tr><td width=449><br><br><font face=courier><UL><PRE>\nWishfulThinker &lt;tony_external@bluetentacle.com&gt; wrote in message news:&lt;40eaf3be\\$1@news.sentex.net&gt;...\n[snip]\n&gt; have been working as a\n&gt; software developer.\n[snip]\n&gt; contemplating the possibility of getting back to school as a Physics\n&gt; undergrad, with the goal of eventually engaging in nuclear energy\n&gt; research. I just turned 27.\n\nActually, there is a possibility you might consider. Just hunt\nfor jobs in the nuclear field as a software developer. Pick\nup some of the physics as on-the-job. Depends on what aspect\nof nuke you want to work on.\n\n&gt; 1. Am I nuts? Have you ever heard of such a thing?\n\nSure. Lots of people make bigger jumps than that and wind up\nmaking major contributions. I am reminded of a mule team driver\nwho wound up doing some very good work in cosmology. (At least\naccording to Carl Sagan\'s _Cosmos_.)\n\n&gt; 2. I need to brush up on my rust-encrusted math skills. What areas of\n&gt; math should I work on BEFORE re-entering university, and up to what\n&gt; level? What other academic areas should I prepare myself on?\n\nThe hardest thing starting an undergrad physics program for most\npeople is the math. You should have at least a solid equivalent\nfor the most advanced math offered in a good highschool. Calculus,\nalgebra, functions and relations, geometry, all at least to the\nend of highschool level. If math is your friend, you will fit right\nin. If math is painful for you, you may not be making a good choice.\n\nIt would not hurt to do a quick review of the physics taught\nin the final year of highschool. But don\'t brood over it, as you\nwill move past that very quickly. Say two days of review.\nSee if you can get whatever text the senior highschool students\nare using these days and power read it.\n\n&gt; 3. How hard would it be for me to re-enter as a Physics undergrad,\n&gt; compared to someone fresh from highschool?\n\nAsk the registrar of any schools you are interested in. It will be\nvery different school-to-school. You should be able to get contact\ninfo for most of them off the web, search at www.google.com.\n\nAsk as soon as possible. They may already have filled many of their\nfall spaces. You might wind up getting a spot that was offered to\na student that turned it down to go to another school.\n\nThere\'s a good chance that any given school is holding some spaces\nfor special cases of various kinds. Many schools don\'t want to have\nendless rows of identical braniacs. They may have some places held\nfor older students, or students with something special to offer.\n\nSome schools will interview possible special students, so you\nshould think about how you are going to offer something special\nto the school. Just as a hint, being a software developer for\nactual money might be a big plus. You could offer to tutor some\nof the computer classes. It *might* even get you a pass on\nsome classes that the other physics undergrads have to take.\nSo, while your classmates are taking Java (or whatever) you\ncould be getting paid to assist the prof in that class, and\nbe getting credit as having completed the course.\n\n&gt; 4. Which undergraduate schools do you recommend, and which graduate\n&gt; schools? I prefer good quality public universities. My previous\n&gt; stint was at UCLA.\n\nUCLA is a good school. As far as other schools: See if you can find\nwhere the graduates from those schools wound up after graduating.\nSee if those kinds of placements appeal to you. If college X is\nsending all their grads to place Y, and you want to go to Y, then\ncollege X is for you.\n\nIf you intend to go on to graduate work, MSc, PhD, that kind of\nthing, you have lots of time to decide that. Then you really\nwant to think about who might be your graduate advisor. Round\nabout the start of 3rd year undergrad, start really hunting\nfor papers and proceedings that interest you, and see where\nthe authors of those papers are from. And, of course, redo your\nsearch on where grads wind up.\n\n&gt; 5. Any other advice is greatly appreciated.\n\nBe prepared to be fairly dedicated. You are going to have to spend\npretty much a full work-week doing homework outside of class or lab\nhours. Labs may eat a lot of time also, especially in senior years.\nYou should pretty much count on not having much time for anything\nother than school.\ngrelbr\n</UL></PRE></font></td></tr></table></BODY><HTML>');"> <IMG SRC=/images/buttons/ip.gif BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER ALT="View this Usenet post in original ASCII form">&nbsp;&nbsp;View this Usenet post in original ASCII form </a></div><P></jabberwocky>WishfulThinker <tony_external@bluetentacle.com> wrote in message news:<40eaf3be$1@news.sentex.net>...
[snip]
> have been working as a
> software developer.

[snip]
> contemplating the possibility of getting back to school as a Physics
> undergrad, with the goal of eventually engaging in nuclear energy
> research. I just turned 27.

Actually, there is a possibility you might consider. Just hunt
for jobs in the nuclear field as a software developer. Pick
up some of the physics as on-the-job. Depends on what aspect
of nuke you want to work on.

> 1. Am I nuts? Have you ever heard of such a thing?

Sure. Lots of people make bigger jumps than that and wind up
making major contributions. I am reminded of a mule team driver
who wound up doing some very good work in cosmology. (At least
according to Carl Sagan's _Cosmos_.)

> 2. I need to brush up on my rust-encrusted math skills. What areas of
> math should I work on BEFORE re-entering university, and up to what
> level? What other academic areas should I prepare myself on?

The hardest thing starting an undergrad physics program for most
people is the math. You should have at least a solid equivalent
for the most advanced math offered in a good highschool. Calculus,
algebra, functions and relations, geometry, all at least to the
end of highschool level. If math is your friend, you will fit right
in. If math is painful for you, you may not be making a good choice.

It would not hurt to do a quick review of the physics taught
in the final year of highschool. But don't brood over it, as you
will move past that very quickly. Say two days of review.
See if you can get whatever text the senior highschool students
are using these days and power read it.

> 3. How hard would it be for me to re-enter as a Physics undergrad,
> compared to someone fresh from highschool?

Ask the registrar of any schools you are interested in. It will be
very different school-to-school. You should be able to get contact
info for most of them off the web, search at www.google.com.

Ask as soon as possible. They may already have filled many of their
fall spaces. You might wind up getting a spot that was offered to
a student that turned it down to go to another school.

There's a good chance that any given school is holding some spaces
for special cases of various kinds. Many schools don't want to have
endless rows of identical braniacs. They may have some places held
for older students, or students with something special to offer.

Some schools will interview possible special students, so you
should think about how you are going to offer something special
to the school. Just as a hint, being a software developer for
actual money might be a big plus. You could offer to tutor some
of the computer classes. It *might* even get you a pass on
some classes that the other physics undergrads have to take.
So, while your classmates are taking Java (or whatever) you
could be getting paid to assist the prof in that class, and
be getting credit as having completed the course.

> schools? I prefer good quality public universities. My previous
> stint was at UCLA.

UCLA is a good school. As far as other schools: See if you can find
See if those kinds of placements appeal to you. If college X is
sending all their grads to place Y, and you want to go to Y, then
college X is for you.

If you intend to go on to graduate work, MSc, PhD, that kind of
thing, you have lots of time to decide that. Then you really
for papers and proceedings that interest you, and see where
the authors of those papers are from. And, of course, redo your
search on where grads wind up.

> 5. Any other advice is greatly appreciated.

Be prepared to be fairly dedicated. You are going to have to spend
pretty much a full work-week doing homework outside of class or lab
hours. Labs may eat a lot of time also, especially in senior years.
You should pretty much count on not having much time for anything
other than school.
grelbr