Physics Should I Be Enjoying My Physics Internship?

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Working in an experimental cosmology lab this summer has led to a lack of inspiration for pursuing a career in the field. The experience has involved spending significant time on trivial research, minimal problem-solving, and report writing, which has been less enjoyable than previous work experiences. Despite gaining skills in various software tools, the intern expresses dissatisfaction with the role. There is a discussion about the nature of internships, suggesting that initial menial tasks are common and that this experience may not reflect the realities of a Ph.D. career. Comparisons are made to typical responsibilities of graduate students and researchers, indicating that the internship experience may align more closely with future academic work than initially perceived. Overall, the conversation emphasizes the importance of patience and learning from less engaging experiences in the early stages of a career in science.
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This summer I've been working in an experimental cosmology lab, and its really not inspiring me to go into the field of experimental cosmology at all. At first I was pretty gung-ho about everything, but the work never really got interesting. I spend half my week looking up information about trivial things on the internet, about an hour actually thinking about a problem, and then the rest of the week writing a report about the tiny problem that I solved.

I'm glad that I've learned how to use a bunch of different software sweets, but, honestly, I had more fun (and got paid more for) killing bugs last summer than I'm having in this internship.

Did you guys enjoy your internships? Is this a bad sign for me if I had been thinking of a Physics PhD?
 
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I don't think it's wise to compare the work of an internship with that of a Ph.D. holder. :wink:

My advice is to give it some time. There's nothing wrong with finding out what you don't like about a subject.
 
All jobs, especially internships, suck until you prove yourself by competently executing menial tasks. Once you master coffee 101 [or lunch boy], your stock will rise. Einstein got his start as a patent clerk - you think he didn't lick any boots?
 
hylander4 said:
I spend half my week looking up information about trivial things on the internet, about an hour actually thinking about a problem, and then the rest of the week writing a report about the tiny problem that I solved.

Apart from occassionally substituting "grant proposal" for report, that's not too different from a week of mine.
 
Dembadon said:
I don't think it's wise to compare the work of an internship with that of a Ph.D. holder. :wink:

Except that in this case, it's pretty close to what a typical graduate student/post-doc/professor does.
 
Vanadium 50 said:
Apart from occassionally substituting "grant proposal" for report, that's not too different from a week of mine.

twofish-quant said:
Except that in this case, it's pretty close to what a typical graduate student/post-doc/professor does.

Good to know!
 

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