Theoretical research only based jobs

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers on the availability of theoretical research jobs outside of academia, particularly for individuals who wish to avoid teaching roles. Participants explore potential career paths and the landscape of job opportunities in theoretical physics.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses a desire for a research-based career without teaching, questioning the options available post-degree.
  • Another participant suggests that academia might offer the largest pool of theoretical research jobs, despite the initial query about non-academic roles.
  • A different viewpoint acknowledges that while there are few research-only positions in academia, they exist in national labs and specialized institutions, though these are limited in number.
  • One participant notes the predominance of experimentalist positions over theorist roles in job advertisements, citing a ratio of 4:1 based on a survey of job listings.
  • Another participant finds the job ratio surprising and draws a parallel to market reactions in unrelated fields, indicating a sense of confusion about the job market dynamics.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree that theoretical research jobs are limited outside of academia, but there is no consensus on the extent of opportunities available or the desirability of teaching roles.

Contextual Notes

The discussion highlights the uncertainty surrounding job availability in theoretical physics and the specific conditions under which certain positions may be accessible, such as the requirement of notable achievements for faculty roles without teaching obligations.

MathematicalPhysicist
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As the title suggest I wish after I finish my higher degree to be involved in a research based career, as far as I can tell
postdoc is for continuing in academia and also teaching, which I am not fond of.

So which options are available without wanting to teach?
 
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You want theoretical research jobs only but not in academia? I would think academia would be your largest theoretical research pool.
 
Pythagorean said:
You want theoretical research jobs only but not in academia? I would think academia would be your largest theoretical research pool.

I don't mind teaching graduate students (although it depends what type of students are enrolled), but teaching first year undergraduate students is not my cup of tea.

I don't mind staying in academia, but my thought was that research only jobs in academia is mainly for postdocs, which is a temporary job anyway.

What other options are there in academia for research only jobs?
 
There are very few. There are US national lab positions plus places like IAS and Perimeter. These probably total ~100 positions, so ~3 per year open up. Note that these are in all areas of physics; if you do HEP Theory and a position in condensed matter theory opens up, it doesn't help you.

There are a small number of industrial theory positions with companies like IBM. These are essentially all in condensed matter, and often very specialized areas within condensed matter.

If you have a Nobel Prize or similar, you can get a faculty position where teaching is not required.
 
ZapperZ said:
In case people missed it, I did a quick, non-scientific survey of the type of jobs being advertised in Physics Today over a period of 4 months. One can read it here:

https://www.physicsforums.com/showpost.php?p=3998201&postcount=144

In those 4 issues, the ratio of experimentalist job to theorist job was 4:1.

Zz.

Interesting; that's actually a better ratio than I'd assumed.
 
Pythagorean said:
Interesting; that's actually a better ratio than I'd assumed.

A few years ago, RIM's stocks actually went up even after posting a loss, all because the loss was less than what many analysts had predicted.

I can't help feeling that this is similar to what you had just said. And in both cases, they made me scratch my head.

Zz.
 
What are you confused about?
 

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