PhD in Engineering Physics-nice mix of physics and engineering?

[Searcher83]

PhD in Engineering Physics-nice mix of physics and engineering?

Hi everybody,

I'm an Instrument Engineer.I love both different calculations,understanding of fundamental principles and also how and why things work and how to make them work better.I mean that I love both engineering and scinece.I constantly practice on my own in electronics,physics,mathematics and some other fields of science and tech(which have less priority for me but also interesting).

Engineering alone seems to me not enough deep penetrating and not enough intellectual 'cause I need more understanding of why so and so happens but not just only satisfying that some stuff works properly.

From the other side,pure science is not enough practical and applied from my point of view,'cause I believe that my every knowledge shoud be applied somehow for real world purposes.After long considerations I started thinking about PhD in Engineering Physics and I got some questions about it:

-Is EngPhys really an exciting mix of physics and different fields of engineering?If so,what does it put more emphasis on?Is it pretty much a physics or an engineering?(I mean,if it still puts a strong accent on electrical engineering,or some aspects of physics,or something else?);

-If it's not a fascinating combination of engineering(as a practical hands-on side) and physics(as a fundamental theoretical side) then what would you advise to have a look at in order to find some kind of such an interesting mix which I mentioned?;

-What is the difference between EngPhys and Applied Physics or these are in fact different names of the same thing?;

-Which US(or,maybe,not only US) Eng Phys grad schools could you advise?(based on personal or acquaintances' experience);

-What are the career perspectives of Eng Phys PhD holders?Are they attractive enough for employers?Which jobs are they usually offered?What in fact do they do at work?Average salaries?

Thanks a lot to everyone who will read it and post some comments.Any help is needed and highly appreciated.

 

[Searcher83]

Hey guys,

Please,advise something on engineering physics grad school!What is it like?I really need your help!

 

[Vanadium 50]

I suspect nobody knows. There are approximately a half-dozen programs in the US. None are very large.

 

[DrummingAtom]

Here's a pretty good idea of Applied Physics grad school I found:

http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/graduate-school/1036208-ranking-applied-physics-programs.html

 

[id the sloth]

From what I understand, Applied physics and Engineering Physics are exactly the same thing.

I am an undergraduate studying engineering physics so I can only speak of what it's like at my level. How the program I am works is that we are essentially physics majors required to take engineering courses. Most of our advanced physics courses have an alternate more applied version.

Compared to a regular engineering major, engineering physics is still more theoretical. But we are allowed to take engineering courses to get more practical skills. It is encouraged that we pick our engineering courses to give us a specialization and skills in a specific field or engineering such as aerospace, electronics, etc.

If you are looking for a subject that takes a deep understanding and tries to do something useful with it, I think Applied/Engineering Physics works well. It is why I chose the subject.

I do not know much about employment but I've heard about undergraduates with EP degrees going into Aerospace. I imagine it really depends on your specialization and how you go about it. I'm only an undergrad, I don't know about the job market, this is from personal research.

While programs called Engineering Physics are rare, Applied Physics ones aren't as rare. Many schools have an Applied Science Department or something like that for Phd programs. Some of them have applied physics listed as a specific path within the physics program. You just have to look around.

I hope I have been helpful.