Can I Pursue Different Graduate Studies After Completing Undergraduate Studies?

  • Thread starter Thread starter hellbike
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Graduate Studies
Join the discussion
Registration is free. Start your own thread to ask a follow-up.
3 replies · 2K views
hellbike
Messages
61
Reaction score
0
Is it possible to apply for graduate studies in other specialization that under-graduate studies were passed?

After obtaining bachelor of physics i may want to go on mathematics graduate studies - is this possible?

I'm asking about EU countries, mostly about UK.
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Generally, yes, there are some crossover topics that will be available to you. Mathematics is a particularly tricky area to handle, however: there will be lots of areas (notably pure mathematics) that will be inaccessible because you won't have covered the necessary introductary mathematics in nearly enough detail (if at all).

In short, rather than depending on the overall 'subject', graduate studies depend on the way in which the skills you have gained from undergraduate might apply to the topic of study.

For instance, in a Ph.D you'd be able to do something like mathematical biology; where the relevant life-science background knowledge would normally be covered in a crash-course of sorts (possibly through attendance at low level undergraduate lectures). This is feasible because projects of this nature will potentially require only a basic understanding of biology to get underway, but need skills in things such as programming - something that you will have as a physicist.

If by graduate studies you also mean things like Msc/PgDip/PgCert, the scenario is similar. It depends on the topic of the individual course. If there's something you're interested in i'd recommend simply looking around various universities that have active research in that area, checking out their postgraduate prospectus' and finding out what they require for entry.

Is there a particular area that interests you?
 
I don't know if this applies to the UK, but I know that some EU countries are a lot less flexible when it comes to switching fields. Math - and pure math in particular - is one of those fields where universities insist on all of the prerequisites. Most universities in the German speaking part of Europe would ask you to complete a Bachelor's degree in math first before they would admit you for a Master's, and a Master's before they would let you start working on a PhD.
 
I'm going to study math on my own during my physical studies.

But i don't think i'll be able to tell what field in pure math is more interesting for me.

I don't think i will be able to tell that for physics either, even though i study that on university.

I though undergraduate is about obtaining most basic knowledge.