Choosing Between M.Sc Physics and Math: Personal Experience and Future Prospects

[amiramin]

It's very difficult for me to decide B/w Physics or Math. As my B.Sc majors were Math and Physics. And i did great in both.
I personally like Physics because it's easy to understand, a lot easier to drive equation. And i always get great marks in it with so little effort.
On the other hand, Math is hard to understand, most of the times don't even know the application of it unless i have studied it in physics, Very time consuming (It almost killed my social life in B.Sc). But once you get it, it's life having sex. I had solved chapters in one sitting.
So
Physics = I Understand more.
Math = I do more (more then you can imagine)

But i am also thinking about the future prospects and think i can earn more with a PhD in Physics. So what do you think Physics or Math

 

[Theorem.]

There is a lot more to math then there is to intercourse, to start.

What kind of math have you done? how rigorous is your math background? You shouldn't choose physics just because the work in physics you have done at an undergraduate level is easy. Even if that were your sole measurement, it's important to remember that there is a big difference between undergraduate and graduate physics. You may be expected to produce original work.

Sometimes the best and most rewarding things in life are incredibly difficult (I would argue that most interesting things fall into this category). You should really consider more things. And I don't think saying you can do more than most people can imagine in mathematics is a good statement, your audience here contains many trained mathematicians and physicists who have probably produced more than you can imagine : )

I guess money is always something to consider. You should maybe look at things you want to do with this PhD. In academia I am pretty sure the pay is competitive and many more physics PhD's get stuck in postdoc positions than math PhD's. If you want to work on industry this depends on what area you want to work in. Mathematician's end up doing okay in some odd areas like cryptography, statisticians, Quants. Some of these areas are also accessible to Physics PhD's as well as a few others but I couldn't really name them myself. You should do some research on what areas of research accommodate each profession.

 

[catsarebad]

weird how brains work. I did Math and Physics as undergrad as well and I felt just the opposite. granted my Math department was far superior and my Physics department was...poor...still I could (and have) studied Math class one day prior to exam and still got A-B. I could never imagine doing the same with Physics.

Anyway, from what I have heard Mathematics MS has bigger punch than Physics MS.

Also, Applied Mathematics can be close to Physics in many ways (depending on what program they have). Advanced ODE, PDE, and follow up courses on those seem pretty fun.