Is being an astrophysicist a good idea?

[KhemicalKara]

I'm a senior in high school, and I plan on going into the field of astrophysics. However, I don't know how to job opportunities are. For as much as I want to be an astrophysicist, I don't know if it's worth it. I need to be able to get a job after college.

Does anyone have any advice or ideas for an alternative/back-up plan?​

 

[Norman]

What exactly do you mean by "going into the field of astrophysics?" Do you mean you want to get a BS in Astrophysics (Don't think there is such a thing - usually just a physics degree with an astro concentration), do you want to do research in astrophysics, or something else.

If you get a BS in physics, there are job opportunities out there, though very few are directly tied to what is likely considered astrophysics research. If you want to do research in astrophysics, then a PhD in physics (with your dissertation research done on a subject in astrophysics) is the most straightforward route.

As far as alternatives, with a BS in physics many people work in software, engineering and other sciences. You should have a look at the AIP statistics site:

Full site: http://www.aip.org/statistics/

Specific to Undergrad employment: http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/emp_bachelor.html

Plot of specific interest (field of employment with bachelors degree): http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/highlite/emp2/figure3a.htm

 

[Pythagorean]

Find a university that has a research group with your interests. You could search for the research group first, then look at the university they're with and make sure the uni provides the relevant background.

 

[fasterthanjoao]

You will be able to find a job with a degree in physics/astronomy/astrophysics - the question is whether or not it's the job you want. Degrees in physical science give you lots of desirable skills that can be applied in lots and lots of different areas - but no, you can't guarantee that you'll end up in a job that's representative of the probably romanticised view you have about astrophysics.

 

[twofish-quant]

I'm a senior in high school, and I plan on going into the field of astrophysics. However, I don't know how to job opportunities are. For as much as I want to be an astrophysicist, I don't know if it's worth it. I need to be able to get a job after college.​

I don't know of anyone that has gone into astrophysics that hasn't been able to get something decent after grad school. It may not be their first choice in careers, but no one is living in homeless shelters.

Part of the difficulty in figuring out the jobs is that the likely job in ten years that you will be doing with an astrophysics degree will be something that hasn't been invented yet. I graduated high school in 1987, and that was before the World Wide Web had been invented, and almost no one knew what e-mail was. The job that I'm doing now involves technology and things that just didn't exist when I was in high school. I ended up on Wall Street (it so happens that the equations for radiation diffusing through a star just happens to be the same as the ones that describes the evolution of a stock option price.)

So I can't tell you want you will be able to do with an astrophysics degree in ten years. Quite frankly, I'm not sure what *I'll* do doing with my astrophysics degree in ten years. But I'll bet it will be cool.​

 

[sedna]

KhemicalKarma:

Astronomy is an extremely rewarding science, had to put that out there. My Astronomy teacher in college has a MS in Astrophysics (from MSU) and has had no problems finding work... That is teaching work. He teaches Astronomy and Physics at CC's around Michigan.

Now big jobs such as NASA, and so on would be challenging to get but still feasible. Just note that a BS is note enough. Plan on getting at least a MS. If you cannot get a job at NASA there are other governmental space agencies (ESO and so on).