Physics BS to Engineering Master's?

[Geezer]

I have my bachelor's degree in physics and am seriously considering getting my Master's in engineering...

How hard is it to make that transition? Do engineering schools regularly accept physics students? Are physics students successful in engineering master's programs?

I would love to pursue a job at a national lab (e.g. Los Alamos). Are such jobs impossible to come by? That is, is it as hard to get a job at Los Alamos as it is a prof job at a Research I school?

 

[Vanadium 50]

To get a graduate degree in engineering requires the equivalent of an undergraduate degree in engineering first. If you don't have that, and someone accepts you, you will have to catch up.

As of now, LANL has 23 engineering positions advertised. (That's out of 10,000 employees.) The University of Wisconsin has 21 advertised positions for engineering professors.

 

[Geezer]

Vanadium, I've found a few programs whose websites say they accept those students with bachelor's degrees in physics (like myself).

I don't mind playing "catch up," but I do mind not being as gainfully employed as I would like to be. At this stage in my life, I'm more motivated to have a comfortable income than I am to try and pursue a Nobel prize, you know?

 

[Aresius]

I am in an electrical engineering M.S./Ph.D program right now and there are several physics bachelor graduates here. As far as I know they only had to take a couple of courses to catch up (signals/systems mostly). Granted, this program is very theory oriented.
We place many engineers at LANL/Sandia, so no issues there.

In fact, my advisor gave the Physics graduate tons of engineering design work, and myself (EE graduate) tons of theoretical and numerical work; so like anyone will tell you, it depends on the program, but a well rounded education will get you places.

 

[Vanadium 50]

They may accept you, but you will still have to "catch up". When you were taking physics courses, your peers were taking engineering courses.

 

[elabed haidar]

how about that in austallia is it the same??

 

[elabed haidar]

please with details

 

[Mororvia]

Vanadium, I've found a few programs whose websites say they accept those students with bachelor's degrees in physics (like myself).

I don't mind playing "catch up," but I do mind not being as gainfully employed as I would like to be. At this stage in my life, I'm more motivated to have a comfortable income than I am to try and pursue a Nobel prize, you know?

Geezer,

I imagine you have found the LEAP program via Boston University. If not, give it a look. It is geared toward students with non-engineering degrees to earn a graduate engineering degree. I can't speak to the pros and cons of the program as I did not attend but it seems like a fine way to go about it.