Career prospects for a physicist.

[Aetholite]

Hello I am a 16 years old high school student and I am thinking of doing a bachelor in physics and then a master in physics.
I was wondering what the job/career prospects are for physicists?

I don't know what specialization I will want to do, but I am very interested in astrophysics and thus the way the universe works. I don't want to study something and then find out there are no jobs.
And what kind of jobs are out there for physicists?
I am not interested in education just so you know.

 

[ZapperZ]

Hello I am a 16 years old high school student and I am thinking of doing a bachelor in physics and then a master in physics.
I was wondering what the job/career prospects are for physicists?

I don't know what specialization I will want to do, but I am very interested in astrophysics and thus the way the universe works. I don't want to study something and then find out there are no jobs.
And what kind of jobs are out there for physicists?
I am not interested in education just so you know.

1. You should start by reading the "So You Want To Be A Physicist" essay. It will tell you what you need to go through to be a physicist/astrophysicist/etc. Note that if you want to work in this field, you need to get a PhD, not just ending with a "Masters" degree.

2. Your "employability" depends very much on (i) your area of speciality (ii) the skill that you have by the time you graduate (iii) and where in the world you are seeking your employment. Someone in "astrophysics" will have less employability than, say, someone who has knowledge of fabricating thin films and knowing how to use several diagnostic systems to categorize materials.

3. The job market very much depends on the economic situation, something that no one can predict, certainly not by the time you graduate.

Zz.

 

[Dr. Courtney]

All skillsets are subject to the economic laws of supply and demand in the job markets.

In most times and locations, there is an oversupply of astro skills relative to the demand. Lack of interest in education employers reduces the demand for astro types even more.

If you are unwilling or unable to teach others, you need to be capable of solving quantitative problems that others are willing to pay you to solve. Exact job markets are unpredictable, but there does tend to be a constant demand for excellent quantitative problem solvers that exceeds the supply enough to pay pretty well.

But the people writing the checks always have this nasty habit of seeing themselves as the bosses. Need to make the bosses happy to keep the cash flowing in.