Is Postgraduate Physics Boring or Fascinating?

  • Thread starter Thread starter thedexter
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Physics
AI Thread Summary
Postgraduate physics involves a significant amount of complex mathematics, including lengthy integrals, particularly in coursework and textbooks like Jackson's E&M and graduate-level quantum mechanics. While the coursework can be challenging and sometimes tedious, the level of interest in the subject often compensates for this. The nature of research work varies by field and whether one is a theorist or experimentalist, but even experimentalists engage with substantial mathematical concepts to analyze data. A genuine passion for physics is essential for those pursuing graduate studies, as it enhances the learning experience despite the rigorous mathematical demands.
thedexter
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
What is post graduate physics like (just asking because I have no Idea) Are they just long long boring integrals or is it extremely interesting (like it used to be in High school).please let me know
Thanks
 
Physics news on Phys.org
thedexter said:
long long boring integrals

Yes, you get plenty of those in graduate-level coursework. Pick up a copy of Jackson's E&M textbook and check out the homework problems. Or any graduate level QM textbook.

In your actual research work, it depends on the field and whether you're a theorist or experimentalist. However, even experimentalists often have to slog through math, in order to set up or understand the calculations that they do to analyze their data.
 
Doing Graduate in Physics means great interest in the subject,so only because of long long boring integrals its not so boring for a Physics Student who really wants to learn and go in Research.
 
I’ve been looking through the curricula of several European theoretical/mathematical physics MSc programs (ETH, Oxford, Cambridge, LMU, ENS Paris, etc), and I’m struck by how little emphasis they place on advanced fundamental courses. Nearly everything seems to be research-adjacent: string theory, quantum field theory, quantum optics, cosmology, soft matter physics, black hole radiation, etc. What I don’t see are the kinds of “second-pass fundamentals” I was hoping for, things like...
TL;DR Summary: I want to do a PhD in applied math but I hate group theory, is this a big problem? Hello, I am a second-year math and physics double major with a minor in data science. I just finished group theory (today actually), and it was my least favorite class in all of university so far. It doesn't interest me, and I am also very bad at it compared to other math courses I have done. The other courses I have done are calculus I-III, ODEs, Linear Algebra, and Prob/Stats. Is it a...

Similar threads

Replies
10
Views
627
Replies
102
Views
5K
Replies
71
Views
714
Replies
11
Views
2K
Replies
12
Views
1K
Replies
8
Views
1K
Back
Top