Dropped out of grad school don't know what to do.

AI Thread Summary
The discussion revolves around the challenges faced by an individual who left grad school to pursue physics but now struggles to find a job due to a gap in their resume and a lack of industry connections. At 28, they feel too old for internships and find most job listings require extensive experience. Despite their strong academic background and ongoing self-study, they express frustration at not knowing how to transition into a career, particularly in fields related to computer science or theoretical physics. They highlight their part-time role as an online physics tutor and express a desire to engage more deeply in theoretical work. Suggestions include reaching out to academic contacts for potential research opportunities and leveraging any connections, no matter how distant, to improve job prospects. The conversation emphasizes the importance of networking and exploring alternative career paths that align with their skills and interests.
Shinn497
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First things first. I'd give anything to stay in grad school. I never have had an issue with classes and I study on my own all the time. I also still take classes through MOOCs. In fact, I actually dropped out so I could do more physics. I was working in a lab and things were just going nowhere. It just felt like a huge wast of time and I decided to stop chasing the carrot.

However, now I just can't go back to school and I need a job. Debts are creeping up and I want to start a carreer before I'm thirty. Yet now I'm in a bit of a pickle. At 28, I'm too old for internships and all of the jobs require 3-5 year experience. Also, since I sort of "vanished" from grad school, I don't really have any connections. The only way of breaking this is going into something related to computer science since I can always improve my programming skills on my own.

I feel, however, that there is something I'm not doing. I guess I see colleagues and former students work for some pretty awesome companies and I wonder what their doing. Also I look at statistic for people with technical degrees and the unemployment is very low. However, I have this black hole in my resume that I don't know how to get out of.

Also I'm wondering. Are there carreers that deal with the theoretical aspect of physics over experimental/engineering stuff? I have a part time job as an online physics tutor. Today I helped an engineering work through a problem involving some really hairy vector calculus. If I could just do that all day I'd be in heaven. I know Data Science involves linear algebra which is why I'm looking into it.
 
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Would it be possible for you to contact your department chair and let him/her know about your situation and possibly start research with another professor?
 
Unless they paid me to do research, it just isn't worth giving up my part time job.
 
If you are in the US, they usually do. At any rate, it may be worth contacting them.
 
Also, since I sort of "vanished" from grad school, I don't really have any connections.

If you have a connection with someone who has connections, you have connections. Anyone can be a connection.
 

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