Programs Questioning Major Choices for College: Physics, Teaching, or PhD?

[Helical]

Hello, I am going to be a Junior in high school next year and I am thinking about what I'm going to do at college. I am very interested in physics and have been for a long time, but I am questioning whether or not I am capable of the rigorous coursework required to get a degree in physics. Or with what I was thinking of doing, teaching at a the university level, a PhD. Ever since I was a kid I have been fascinated with science and physics seems to be the most fascinating (I'm not talking about the physics where you just calculate kinetic energy, the real stuff). I am not great at math but I would say above average (when I apply myself which isn't that often in my mundane math classes). I have talked to my math/physics teacher whom I greatly respect and he thinks I am capable. I just don't want to get myself into something I can't handle. The thing about me is, I hate math class (in case you hadn't noticed from my previous comment) but I enjoy doing math when applying it to physics or chemistry. But if I have to take a ton of math classes in college that will be ridiculously difficult and boring I'm not sure if I can do it. If I don't find a class to be interesting I do poorly which is my problem in math class (I hardly do homework in that class and fairly easily get a B). So I just want to get some opinions of what I should do.
Thanks

P.S. Sorry if I repeated myself which undoubtedly did.

 

[jbusc]

Don't know what advice I can offer except... you might want to investigate which schools have generous policies for change of major (like mine)

That way, you're not stuck in a major you don't like - so you always have a backup major, and you can "test the waters" as it were.

 

[michealsmith]

learn about physics degree etc also look at career prospects of a physicist outside of physics just make sure uve thought about it and u have all your bases covered.

 

[phun]

If you know you hate taking math classes, you will probably want to become an experimental physicist if you do pursue a career in physics. I don"t know how much you are familiar with the idea of experimental and theoretical physics, but you might want to start looking into experimental physics, and see if you think you will like doing experiments and stuff. Maybe ask teachers who majored in physics. By the way, you still have plenty of time to think about this :)