Doctorate in theoretical physics

[Uri Zlatnik]

Hello everyone,

My name is Uri and I have a question.

What jobs are available for those who completed a Ph.D in particle and theoretical physics and made a postdoctorate research in string theory and quantum gravity? What kind of jobs are available to these kind of people besides working or teaching in university?

 

[Monocles]

A significant number (probably a significant majority, but I don't know for sure) work in finance and related fields.

 

[twofish-quant]

A significant number (probably a significant majority, but I don't know for sure) work in finance and related fields.

You rang? :-) :-) :-)

Anyway there is a market for physics Ph.D.'s in finance. The one caveat is that it's easier to get a job if you are a Ph.D.'s with large amounts of computation experience and/or exposure to real data. So someone with experience in lattice QCD or observational cosmology would likely end up in higher demand than a "pencil and paper" string theorist.

The other thing is that I know a few physics Ph.D.'s that ended up being technical project managers.

 

[fasterthanjoao]

There are lots of jobs one would be able to do with that level of qualification. I know of a PhD graduate in that area (though they have not completed any post-doctoral projects) who now works for a major satellite manufacturer: though these types of jobs are normally open to physics Bsc graduate as well, it may mean that one with PhD level education will simply get more money or possibly be fast-tracked to a particular role.

 

[Uri Zlatnik]

You rang? :-) :-) :-)

Anyway there is a market for physics Ph.D.'s in finance. The one caveat is that it's easier to get a job if you are a Ph.D.'s with large amounts of computation experience

So what other jobs can you get beside finance if you have a large amount of computational physics experience?

 

[twofish-quant]

So what other jobs can you get beside finance if you have a large amount of computational physics experience?

Finance is the third industry that I've gotten a job in. I've also worked in oil exploration and logistics. Basically anything that involves getting a computer to do something.