Advice for Italian Physics Student on Career Path

[ITAphys88]

Hi everybody,

i am an Italian student who's seeking some advice in order to evaluate in a proper way his career plan for the future.

I have a Bachelor in Physics, 110 out of 110 summa cum laude (the highest grade with praise)
with a research experience in micro/nanofabrication at probably the most important italian research center on the topic, IOM- CNR.
I am currently working towards a Msc in Materials Science (in Milan) and i expect to graduate next year (around october) with 110/110 summa cum laude (my exam grades are really really good).

Granted that i seriously need to expatriate from Italy (which is a mess, no funds for research and development, no funds for schools, a stupid government and a horrible economy with 30% youth unemployment and low salaries), I'm still trying to figure out if i want to be a researcher or not (working in the industry or in finance).

my Msc thesis (during 9 months) is going to be about nanoelectronics or spintronics devices, but i have not decided yet if it's going to be computational (i have strong maths/statistics/computational skills) or experimental (as my Bsc thesis was).
which of the two is more appreciated by industries? and by the financial world (granted that i would like to do a numerate/computational Phd in Physics/Materials)?thanks a lot!

 

[ITAphys88]

i've got another question =)

with this kind of CV:

- max grades at High School (100/100)
- 2 months internship at a private "translation and interpreting" Office
- "Tech-Stage" summer school at Politecnico di Milano (during high school)
- five time winner of merit and income-based bursary (500 euros)
- max grades on both Physics Bsc at University of Modena and Materials Science Msc at University of Milano-Bicocca (110/110 summa cum laude)
- a 2 months internship at IOM - CNR, partially funded, as a part of Bsc Thesis.
- a 9 months research thesis (probably at MDM - CNR in collaboration with STMicroelectronics)
- six time winner of merit-based and merit and income-based University bursaries, ranging from 500 to 5000 euros
- merit and income-based tuition waivers awarded throughout my stay at University
- 2 years working in International Affairs Office of University
- 5 years private teaching and 5 years volunteering.
- Strong maths, statistics, computational (fortran and Matlab) skills
- Strong PC skills (web development, advanced ECDL, 3dsmax, AutoCAD, Linux)
- C1 in English, B1 in French
- Strong relationship and communicative skills

i'm probably forgetting something..

Can i have a shot to top-tier universities (both American and European), especially good graduate schools?? like worldwide top 10? top 20? top 50?

thanks a lot =)