Is studying physics as a part time degree effective?

[quantknight]

Hi I have come to a conclusion that I cannot study physics master's in any form since I don't have the necessary background. I am considering the option of pursuing physics degree in part time while working. My question is, if I were to complete bachelor's and master's, would I be eligible to pursue ph.d? are part time degrees valid enough to pursue a career in research?

 

[ZapperZ]

Hi I have come to a conclusion that I cannot study physics master's in any form since I don't have the necessary background. I am considering the option of pursuing physics degree in part time while working. My question is, if I were to complete bachelor's and master's, would I be eligible to pursue ph.d? are part time degrees valid enough to pursue a career in research?

1. In the US (you neglected to indicate where you intend to pursue such academic degrees), one only needs an undergraduate degree to apply for admission to PhD programs (please read my "So You Want To Be A Physicist" essays).

2. How LONG do you think you will end up taking to do a physics undergraduate degree part time? A standard undergraduate degree in the US takes 4 years. Doing this "part time" will probably take double that. Are you willing to spend 8 long years just to get an undergraduate physics degree?

3. And presumably, you'll be doing the same thing if and when you get accepted into a PhD program. Are you aware of the intense requirement for such a program? The average PhD program in physics takes slightly more than 6 years. If we double that for a part-time program (assuming you pass the qualifier), then we're talking 12 long years! However, depending on the school, there may be a limit to the amount of time one can stay in a PhD program, so I'll cut this off at 8 years as well.

4. Combining #2 and #3, we're talking 16 years from start to end! Are you willing to put in that long of a time?

5. And we haven't even considered post-doc positions, something almost everyone goes through to get into research labs/academic research institutions. Inevitably, one has to move to a different location for post-docs.

These are factors that you need to consider, if you haven't already.

Zz.

 

[Choppy]

For the record, whether a degree is completed part time or full time has little bearing on admission decisions to graduate programs. People on admissions committees may pay attention to the other stuff you've been doing though. If you enroll part time because a full course is too much for you to do well in, that may be seen differently than if you're also working a full-time job to support a family while studying, of if you were dealing with health issues. But I think those tend to be higher order corrections. In my experience is that what counts the most are the courses that you took and how well you did in them.

 

[quantknight]

Thanks for the reply!

1. In the US (you neglected to indicate where you intend to pursue such academic degrees), one only needs an undergraduate degree to apply for admission to PhD programs (please read my "So You Want To Be A Physicist" essays).

I intend to pursue my degree in Germany. It takes 3 years for ug, and 2 years for pg to complete it in regular stream, I am not sure how much it would take time in part time.

4. Combining #2 and #3, we're talking 16 years from start to end! Are you willing to put in that long of a time?

I never expected it would take this long. May be after graduation, I can do Ph.D. in regular. My goal is to shift my career into physics after 10 or 15 year meanwhile working in a corporate job till that. When people quit their career in corporate , they go into business, but I want get into physics research.

 

[taenyfan]

As a Physics undergrad, my weekly schedule consists of 20 hours of lectures/laboratory work and around 30 hours of independent studying understanding lecture material/ solving problems/ doing research.

That's 50 hours of work every week, for 4 years, just like a full time job.

Of course there are vacation period, but they are mostly for studying too.

Studying physics part time is not a good idea. It's like taking two full-time jobs. How are you going to manage?

But if you really want to do so, here's a good website written by a Nobel laureate that can guide you. http://www.goodtheorist.science/classmech.html
It covers all the necessary materials to prepare you for theoretical physics research. The author himself says the material takes at least 5 years of intense studying to master.

 

[quantknight]

As a Physics undergrad, my weekly schedule consists of 20 hours of lectures/laboratory work and around 30 hours of independent studying understanding lecture material/ solving problems/ doing research.

That's 50 hours of work every week, for 4 years, just like a full time job.

Of course there are vacation period, but they are mostly for studying too.

Studying physics part time is not a good idea. It's like taking two full-time jobs. How are you going to manage?

But if you really want to do so, here's a good website written by a Nobel laureate that can guide you. http://www.goodtheorist.science/classmech.html
It covers all the necessary materials to prepare you for theoretical physics research. The author himself says the material takes at least 5 years of intense studying to master.

thanks for the resource! I couldn't find any option of transferring into physics. So I thought of doing it in part time. Looks like I have no option of studying physics at all :(

 

[Aju007]

thanks for the resource! I couldn't find any option of transferring into physics. So I thought of doing it in part time. Looks like I have no option of studying physics at all :(

Did you find a solution?
I find myself in the exact same situation as you.. work in corporate till I graduate with a physics degree.
Reading these answers, I don't think I'll be able to do it.
Let me know what happened to you

 

[gmax137]

I worked with a guy who got a BS in electrical engineering, taking classes while working. I think it took him 9 or 10 years. This particular guy was hired straight from the Navy so he had a lot of practical experience but no degree. So, it can be done but it takes unrelenting commitment, over a long time.