Schools Selecting Concentration for Grad School

[kitaewolf]

I am a prospective physics student currently attending a 4-year university. As I began to work in a lab in preparation for graduate school, I have been hearing cases of people with physics degree switch their graduate major/concentration and go to physics-related mathematics or engineering field.
So my question is, how hard is it to make such a switch, and can I applied for such physics-related mathematics or engineering fields with physics degree? Finally, I understand that admission to physics graduate school is very competitive. So I was wondering how hard would it be to get into these physics-related mathematics or engineering fields compared to physics grad program?

 

[edgepflow]

Most engineering colleges welcome physics degree holders into their graduate programs.

 

[physics girl phd]

_{I quote myself from a related thread:}
I think it "used to be less of a concern in a "related field" during graduate admissions... but with possibly larger applicant pools in the present poor economy, it might play a role if the graduate program doesn't feel you can pass qualifying exams (if the institution has them) and core coursework (and possibly comprehensive exams) without additional remedial courses in the field."

With that in mind, try to take upper-level overlap courses as electives in the field(s) of interest.