Should I pursue a Physics Major?

[Glenn Tappan]

I am currently in 9th grade and have been into astronomy and basic physics for a few years now. I'm thinking about (once enrolled obviously) majoring in physics.
Only problems are:
1: Pretty good at math but struggle a bit and end up forgetting a lot of information (at least in algebra) and I know a lot of math issues come down to study ethic and teaching but considering physics extremely math requiring, I might struggle so I'm curious about your thoughts.
2: While interested in astronomy (would most likely pursue astrophysics at some point) and a lot of the physics around the universe (find things like general and special relativity quite fascinating), I feel like I end up trying to convince myself to go for physics more then wanting to which is definitely a problem. I do like physics and am interested in pursuing it but as I look more and more into the nitty gritty of it (amount of work, extremely complicated physics, etc.) I end up getting turned off. I would love to know what you guys thing!

 

[BvU]

Hello Glenn,

9th grade means what age (I'm non-US) ? Probably a lot of other things going on in your life and yourself. What struck me is the (lack of) balance in what you want and what you want to do to be successful. Age-related laziness ? There's also smartness-related laziness: If you're smart enough you don't have to remember all that much in exact sciences because you understand the internal relationships. But to get there, you need to invest. I personally found it rewarding. Understanding a lot more from the world around you than most people is quite exhilarating .
Up to you.

 

[jtbell]

9th grade means what age (I'm non-US) ?

Normally about age 14. 9th grade is the beginning of four years of "high school." College or university comes after that.

I think that's too early to worry a lot about what one is going to major in, in college/university. If you're interested in a particular path, start taking classes in high school towards that end. In this case, that would be more math and some physics. Then you can see how well you actually do in them, and whether you really like them.

 

[Choppy]

1: Pretty good at math but struggle a bit and end up forgetting a lot of information (at least in algebra) and I know a lot of math issues come down to study ethic and teaching but considering physics extremely math requiring, I might struggle so I'm curious about your thoughts.

It's important to remember that mathematics is a skill that improves with practice. If you're forgetting things, one of the likely reasons is that you're not using the tools that you've learned often enough. The good news is that if you really have a desire to study something like physics, but struggle with math, you can overcome this in most cases with practice and feedback.

2: While interested in astronomy (would most likely pursue astrophysics at some point) and a lot of the physics around the universe (find things like general and special relativity quite fascinating), I feel like I end up trying to convince myself to go for physics more then wanting to which is definitely a problem. I do like physics and am interested in pursuing it but as I look more and more into the nitty gritty of it (amount of work, extremely complicated physics, etc.) I end up getting turned off. I would love to know what you guys thing!

I agree with jtbell, that you don't need to worry too much right now about the specific details of a university major. It's important right now to explore and build as solid a foundation you can in the subjects that interest you. Remember there are a lot of different avenues that branch out from physics - many of which you probably haven't explored too much (or even heard of) yet. Some career opportunities that may be options for you over the course of your life may not even exist yet.

It will be challenging though. Most people who are successful in physics embrace the challenges and develop a passion for them. When they don't know the answer to a problem right away, they see that as a challenge to get excited about.

 

[Dr.D]

There's also smartness-related laziness: If you're smart enough you don't have to remember all that much in exact sciences because you understand the internal relationships. But to get there, you need to invest. I personally found it rewarding.

I'm pretty terrible at memorizing things, but I found early on that if I could derive it, I did not need to remember it. As BvU has indicated, if you know what the fundamentals are, all the rest you can develop as needed. It worked for me in college and the rest of my career. Now, truth be told, there are things that do remember that I never really intended to memorize. It just happened from repeatedly doing the derivations until I got to the point of "oh, that again ..."

 

[Apple_Mango]

Oh please, you can poorly and every single grade level and take the 12th grade seriously( Alg 1 summer),(Geo and Alg 2) (pre-cal summer) and still pull off physics.

 

[Mark44]

Oh please, you can poorly and every single grade level and take the 12th grade seriously( Alg 1 summer),(Geo and Alg 2) (pre-cal summer) and still pull off physics.

Aside from being nearly unintelligible, this seems to be very bad advice. Maybe someone could get through a lightweight intro physics course (AKA "Physics for Poets"), but having little or no background math knowledge would make it extremely difficult to even pass a more serious physics course.

 

[Apple_Mango]

Aside from being nearly unintelligible, this seems to be very bad advice. Maybe someone could get through a lightweight intro physics course (AKA "Physics for Poets"), but having little or no background math knowledge would make it extremely difficult to even pass a more serious physics course.

I wasn't recommending somebody to wait until their 12th year to take maths seriously. I was saying how it's quite possible to pull off physics at the last year by taking a surplus of maths class and catch up quite easily.

 

[Mark44]

I wasn't recommending somebody to wait until their 12th year to take maths seriously. I was saying how it's quite possible to pull off physics at the last year by taking a surplus of maths class and catch up quite easily.

Meaning "pass the physics class" as you seemed to imply in another thread? This is not good advice to be giving someone who wants to work toward a degree in physics.

 

[Crass_Oscillator]

I recommend every prospective physics major starts in an engineering field of choice (preferably electrical engineering specializing in semiconductor devices since this has the highest overlap) and take physics classes, pursuing a minor. If you turn out to really want a deeper understanding of the physics and to actually be good enough to be competitive for a physics career, switch or double major. If neither of these turn out to be true, stick to a degree that will easily get you a job.

A EE with a lot of physics classes but without the physics degree can even get into a physics grad program under special circumstances, especially applied physics. You can even work on solid state physics in a EE department if that's your cup of tea. Other engineering majors can do applied physics in an engineering grad school (e.g. fluid mechanics for aerospace, DFT for materials engineering etc).

 

[StatGuy2000]

I recommend every prospective physics major starts in an engineering field of choice (preferably electrical engineering specializing in semiconductor devices since this has the highest overlap) and take physics classes, pursuing a minor. If you turn out to really want a deeper understanding of the physics and to actually be good enough to be competitive for a physics career, switch or double major. If neither of these turn out to be true, stick to a degree that will easily get you a job.

A EE with a lot of physics classes but without the physics degree can even get into a physics grad program under special circumstances, especially applied physics. You can even work on solid state physics in a EE department if that's your cup of tea. Other engineering majors can do applied physics in an engineering grad school (e.g. fluid mechanics for aerospace, DFT for materials engineering etc).

Your advice will not work for those in Canada (note: I live in Canada), since engineering programs here are both limited enrollment programs, and are quite rigid in terms of course selections. The physics courses that engineering students take are very different from what physics majors take, and the scope to take more physics courses are limited unless you are in a specialized engineering physics program.

Prospective physics students here are usually required to either (a) select their major program at the moment of application, or (b) be enrolled in a general science program or (as in the University of Toronto) a student in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and then select their concentration after second year.

 

[Vanadium 50]

I was saying how it's quite possible to pull off physics at the last year by taking a surplus of maths class and catch up quite easily.

And how would you know? You say you're starting Algebra 1. Your advice cannot be coming from personal experience.

 

[Crass_Oscillator]

Your advice will not work for those in Canada (note: I live in Canada), since engineering programs here are both limited enrollment programs, and are quite rigid in terms of course selections. The physics courses that engineering students take are very different from what physics majors take, and the scope to take more physics courses are limited unless you are in a specialized engineering physics program.

Prospective physics students here are usually required to either (a) select their major program at the moment of application, or (b) be enrolled in a general science program or (as in the University of Toronto) a student in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and then select their concentration after second year.

That's very unfortunate. Most 18 year olds who want to major in physics aren't cut out for it, how can they make such a decision?

 

[Choppy]

For what it's worth, I think my experience with the Canadian system was different. Engineers had to take a general engineering first year. Physics students had to take a general science first year. So long as you had the prerequisite courses you could get into the physics stream. People came in from engineering. People transferred into engineering from physics/sciences.

 

[StatGuy2000]

For what it's worth, I think my experience with the Canadian system was different. Engineers had to take a general engineering first year. Physics students had to take a general science first year. So long as you had the prerequisite courses you could get into the physics stream. People came in from engineering. People transferred into engineering from physics/sciences.

You are correct that engineers were required to take a general engineering first year, and science students (including physics) had to take a general science first year. It's also true that students can transfer from engineering into the sciences, and (under certain circumstances) transfer into engineering from physics/sciences.

But (at least at my alma mater, University of Toronto -- others can chime in on this) typically this is only allowed if there are enough open spaces within the engineering program to allow this, and the courses that the physics (or other science) students take are considered equivalent. And (again, depending on the school) engineering programs are usually limited enrollment programs, so at any given year, only a limited number of students are admitted into the program.

In general, I've found from talking to people that it is generally much easier for an engineering student to transfer into a science program than the converse.

 

[Crass_Oscillator]

All the more reason for U of T prospective physics students to aim for engineering first I'd say :P

 

[StatGuy2000]

All the more reason for U of T prospective physics students to aim for engineering first I'd say :P

The easiest path for U of T prospective physics students to do so would be to enroll in the Engineering Science program.

http://engsci.utoronto.ca/

This is a broad-based engineering program, of which one of the options available is engineering physics (as I've mentioned before).

 

[Dr. Courtney]

You have time. Keep working hard in your math and science courses. We encourage our aspiring STEM majors to start taking the ACT every year beginning in 9th grade. You should see your ACT scores in math and science improving each year. If they are not improving you need a program to supplement your progress to ensure ongoing growth.

By college, you should be much more aware of your abilities and interests than you are now. Work hard to keep all the doors open. You have a lot of time to consider what you want to do. If there is an ISEF-affiliated science fair in your area, doing a project and competing in that can also be a great avenue to explore and build your interests and skills in science. See:

https://www.physicsforums.com/insights/secrets-successful-science-projects/