Grad vs undergrad difficulty and workload

[radical negative]

I'm going to be taking graduate physics courses this semester and I need to decide how many to take. My question is how does the difficulty and work load of graduate physics courses generally compare to upper level undergraduate physics courses. I know there is variation between courses and colleges I would just like a general impression.

 

[radium]

From my experience three is usually a full course load for grad students. The more difficult courses can easily have over ten hours of homework every week.

 

[jasonRF]

Just like undergrad courses, not all grad courses are created equal. You should talk with your advisor and other students in your department that have taken those classes to see how difficult they are and what the workload is. Some of the TAs you had for your undergrad courses probably took the grad courses you are looking at, and they would know a lot more than we would. We would just be guessing.

However, my experience is the same as radiums. 3 courses was a full load in grad school, and 5 was a full load in undergrad. I spent more time on coursework the first year of grad school than I did any given year of undergrad.

Good luck,

Jason

 

[Vanadium 50]

Radium is right as a rule of thumb - although time was when undergraduate classes were supposed to be 3 hours of homework per hour of class - so ten hours is towards the low side of what you should be estimating.

 

[Dr. Courtney]

From my experience three is usually a full course load for grad students. The more difficult courses can easily have over ten hours of homework every week.

Two at a time was always enough for me.

 

[radical negative]

Thanks for the replies. I've signed up for five but it looks like that will probably be too much. My plan though was to try them out and then withdraw from some if necessary. I hope that won't look bad.

 

[jtbell]

When I was a grad student many years ago, the normal situation at my university (U of Michigan) for students in the first few years was a half-time assistantship (teaching and/or research) accompanied by two graduate-level courses. In principle, this made four graduate courses a "full load" but I didn't know anyone who actually did that.

 

[radium]

I should also mention that the people who took three were for the most part theorists who hadn't started research. Experimentalists usually only took two.

Which five have you signed up for? This is almost certainly too many, especially if at least one of them is something like QFT or GR.

 

[Dr. Courtney]

Thanks for the replies. I've signed up for five but it looks like that will probably be too much. My plan though was to try them out and then withdraw from some if necessary. I hope that won't look bad.

Get some advice from faculty at your school.

 

[radical negative]

I should also mention that the people who took three were for the most part theorists who hadn't started research. Experimentalists usually only took two.

Which five have you signed up for? This is almost certainly too many, especially if at least one of them is something like QFT or GR.

I signed up for qm 1, e&m 1, classical mechanics, solid state 1, and information physics, along with partial differential eqs. My plan is to check them out and see what if any I should drop. The first week I can drop with a full refund and the second week I can drop with 30% refund and no w grade.

 

[Dr Transport]

Math methods or PDE's classical mechanics and E&M 1 are more than sufficient for 1st semester grad work.

 

[Vanadium 50]

I'm going to be taking graduate physics courses this semester

A few months ago you were in community college working towards a 2-year degree. Are you sure you are ready for graduate classes? Much less a double load of them?

 

[ZapperZ]

I signed up for qm 1, e&m 1, classical mechanics, solid state 1, and information physics, along with partial differential eqs. My plan is to check them out and see what if any I should drop. The first week I can drop with a full refund and the second week I can drop with 30% refund and no w grade.

You didn't address the suggestion on talking to your academic advisor, which gives the impression that you haven't. Why haven't you?

Wait till you discover how long and how much effort it takes to do E&M.

And another question. What makes you think that you are prepared to take graduate level courses, when you are just now taking undergraduate-level physics courses? That horse looks very uncomfortable standing there behind the cart.

Zz.

 

[gleem]

I signed up for qm 1, e&m 1, classical mechanics, solid state 1, and information physics, along with partial differential eqs. My plan is to check them out and see what if any I should drop. The first week I can drop with a full refund and the second week I can drop with 30% refund and no w grade.

Which courses are graduate level? And what undergraduate course have you already taken? The course that you say you will be taking are usually not taken simultaneously so it would be helpful for for giving any advice to delineate your educational background more thoroughly.

 

[radical negative]

Thanks for the replies. I have talked some to faculty and my academic adviser. My adviser clearly thought what I signed up for was ambitious and his comment was "it's your life". Like I said, I expect to withdraw from some of the classes, and the replies here will make me lean more towards withdrawal in my decisions.

I think I'm ready for graduate courses because I took half the required credits of upper level physics courses along with two math courses last semester with a 4.0. I suspect my university might be less rigorous than average, as it seems easier than my community college. The graduate committee obviously thought I was ready, though I'm still an undergrad in an M.S./B.S. program.

This brings me to another question, my goal is to finish a B.S. and M.S. and then go into a Ph.D. program preferably at another university. I wonder though, if its possible to enter such a Ph.D. program before completing my M.S. or even B.S.

 

[gleem]

if its possible to enter such a Ph.D. program before completing my M.S. or even B.S.

In the US a BS is a minimum requirement for admission into a PhD program. If there is some doubt in a persons mind about their ability to handle the PhD program they might first get an MS but most with a BS go straight into the doctoral program.

 

[jtbell]

Right, in the US, the normal route (in physics at least) is from a BA/BS directly into a PhD program. The first two years of the PhD are normally mostly coursework, similar to what you would have in a MS program.

 

[FactChecker]

Many graduate classes have people who had that class before and their studies were interrupted (got job, got married, moved, etc.). They may be retaking it to review before continuing in a PhD program. So competition in those classes may be much tougher. Just my experience, yours may be different.

 

[radium]

You should definitely drop at least half of those courses. If you want a good intro to grad coursework, I would take quantum and E&M since those are core courses in every physics grad program (graduate level classical mechanics is not in many departments). Don't take solid state, you should already be comfortable with quantum and stat mech before you take it.

 

[vela]

I think I'm ready for graduate courses because I took half the required credits of upper level physics courses along with two math courses last semester with a 4.0. I suspect my university might be less rigorous than average, as it seems easier than my community college. The graduate committee obviously thought I was ready, though I'm still an undergrad in an M.S./B.S. program.

So what undergrad courses have you taken? Did you already take upper-division classical mechanics, E&M, quantum mechanics, condensed matter, and statistical mechanics?

 

[Dr Transport]

unless you are a diamond in the rough, no self respecting graduate physics program would allow a person to come into the program without a BS degree.