- #1
malignant
- 42
- 1
I'm a third year physics student and I can't decide between computational-based physics and plain physics. I've taken a few programming courses and have been programming as a hobby since I was around 12. I originally wanted to do a lot of math and physics to apply it to programming for graphics and the physics etc but eventually slowed down on the programming stuff and became very interested in the more advanced physics.
Maybe the act of wondering which one I should do already gives me the answer that I'm not dedicated enough to do pure physics, but it could be that I'm wondering out of fear and am inclined to pick something more employable which is natural since I grew up in poverty.
So I'm wondering, is physics not worth doing if I'm not absolutely sure it's the only thing I'd want to do? I do spend a considerable amount of free time on physics, but it seems like most people that choose pure physics can't even picture themselves doing something different. I was even dabbling with the idea of medical physics. That for sure was out of fear of not being employable, though.
Also, if I obtain a masters in computational physics instead of physics, would it require a lot of extra time to then pursue a phd in regular physics? It does leave out a considerable amount of advanced physics courses but I'm not sure if courses are even a major factor in how long a phd takes.
Maybe the act of wondering which one I should do already gives me the answer that I'm not dedicated enough to do pure physics, but it could be that I'm wondering out of fear and am inclined to pick something more employable which is natural since I grew up in poverty.
So I'm wondering, is physics not worth doing if I'm not absolutely sure it's the only thing I'd want to do? I do spend a considerable amount of free time on physics, but it seems like most people that choose pure physics can't even picture themselves doing something different. I was even dabbling with the idea of medical physics. That for sure was out of fear of not being employable, though.
Also, if I obtain a masters in computational physics instead of physics, would it require a lot of extra time to then pursue a phd in regular physics? It does leave out a considerable amount of advanced physics courses but I'm not sure if courses are even a major factor in how long a phd takes.