Physics Careers: Expectations vs. Reality

[Surf_and_Sky]

Hi Everyone. I graduated with a PhD in physics from UC Irvine. I'm struggling a bit in my career because I'm wondering if my expectations for the type of work that is actually available in industry to physics PhDs isn't really in line with reality. I spent my time in graduate school working in a lab inventing things, building things, bolting, soldering, drilling, gluing, building experiments, creating CAD drawings of parts and building them in the machine shop, taking data, and writing papers. It was a hands-on design-build-test way of working, and I really liked it.

The thing is, it seems that this type of work is virtually non-existent in industry. My hope of using my creativity and hands-on laboratory skills to solve real-world problems by inventing things was perhaps more fantasy than reality. First, I'm having trouble finding a job listing in my US state that even requires a PhD in physics (outside of academia). I live in a metro area with more than a million people, and there are lots and lots of job listings for people with a bachelor's degree in engineering, but hardly anyone is asking for a physics PhD. Second, even if I did get one of these jobs, the reality of engineering jobs is not "building stuff" or "inventing things," but is actually a lot of meetings, paperwork, bureaucracy, regulation compliance, reports, risk reduction, emails, etc. There are a few job listings in my field at out-of-state laboratories, but I'd have to move to a different state, which I don't want to do.

I look at the jobs that my fellow graduate students actually got after graduation, and almost none of them has a job doing the type of work I did in grad school. Instead, the jobs that most of them actually got are data science jobs. Even the ones that got laboratory jobs are working in industries that are very slow-moving, with progress taking years or decades to measure. I do have some peers who got jobs doing engineering-type work, but they could have gotten those jobs with just a bachelor's in engineering, instead of taking the time to get a PhD in physics.

Even though I did a postdoc at a prestigious institution, I'm feeling like the promise of the industry job market for physics PhDs doesn't match the reality, even for highly qualified people. It's not that I'm getting beaten out by someone with better skills, it's more like there's nothing to apply to. The jobs for physics PhDs just aren't there - for anyone.

Can someone give me a reality check here?

 

[Choppy]

I think your revised assessment is accurate. Outside of academia, the skill sets in demand tend to be quite specific and driven by industry demand. That means, as you've indicated, navigating industrial bureaucracy, safety and compliance with standards, project management, etc. Most physics PhDs are able to make the jump, but they're not generally doing the same kind of academic work that they were doing during their PhD. Rather, they identify a marketable subset of skills (data science work, programming, etc.) and translate that.

The APS tends to keep data and has some useful resources to help with this transition...
https://www.aps.org/careers

 

[gleem]

Companies are looking for problem solvers and to provide directions for others to implement the solutions.

The American Institute of Physics also has a lot of info on jobs and skills employers are looking for example, who is hiring PhDs and what are the required skills.

https://www.aip.org/statistics/whos-hiring-physics-phds

AI will be more important than ever. Here is what companies expect you to use AI for.

https://www.aip.org/statistics/for-...-degree-recipients-from-academic-year-2023-24

There are a few job listings in my field at out-of-state laboratories, but I'd have to move to a different state, which I don't want to do.

I'm afraid that if you do not move, you will greatly handicap your ability to find a satisfactory job.

One possibility for more hands-on development work is "startup" companies in your field. But finding them may require a lot of work and most likely moving.