- #1
Physics_UG
Gold Member
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I honestly don't know what I want for myself, and I'm not getting any younger. I am 25 and I need to devise a plan for my life.
Here's a brief history of my life. I graduated from a small engineering school in michigan with a double major in electrical engineering and physics in 2008. Then I went to graduate school in Arizona for a year working on a PhD in electrical engineering. I struggled with mental illness when I was out there (was eventually diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder) and this forced me to leave the program. I was doing well out there and I regret leaving almost every day. I went back to Michigan (my hometown) and stayed there for a year looking for a job. I could not find anything and I sunk into a deep depression. I decided to go back to grad school in Arizona so I went back. I lasted about 3 weeks there since I was in my deep depression. I felt like I wasn't interested in my courses (device physics) or my research. I was sleeping for up to 18 hours/day. I am now back at home in Michigan and I need to decide what to do with my life.
Part of me wants to go to grad school in physics to get a PhD but I know I won't be able to get into a good graduate program in physics because my PGRE score is low (600 or 35th percentile) and my general GRE is pretty mediocre (first time I took it I got a 660Q 420V 4.0 AW and second time I took it I got a 760Q 320V...I didn't take the writing section the second time). Also, my GPA is pretty mediocre (3.44), and I honestly don't have a laser-like focus on what I want to do in grad school. It is hard for me to write a personal statement because of this. I really don't know what I want to do. Because of this, I think I will only be able to get into a low ranking graduate program (ranked ~100 by us news). I am thinking about wayne state university. I am sort of interested in experimental particle physics but I am afraid I will have difficulty finding a job if I major in this. I could major in condensed matter physics but I am not sure if I am interested in solid state physics anymore. It's what I thought I was interested in the first time I went to grad school but now I am not so sure.
I am also considering doing a part time masters in mechatronic systems engineering (one of the two mechatronics masters programs in the country) at lawrence technological university in michigan. http://www.ltu.edu/engineering/mechanical/mechatronics.asp Do you think this is a good degree program that will open up doors for me? Will people recognize this degree since it's so rare in the united states? The employers I have talked to lately I have had to explain what the degree program is all about. Should I do a MS in electrical and computer engineering instead? Is this degree more marketable?
Finally, perhaps I should just work for a while before going back to school to give myself some time to decide what I want to do. I don't know. All of this is really stressing me out though.
What do you think physicsforums? I know it's hard for other people to make life changing decisions for me without knowing me better, but I am absolutely lost. I honestly can't imagine what I would like to be doing 10 years or 20 years from now. I feel like my ideal job would be to be a physics professor at a small liberal arts college, but it's so difficult to become a professor nowadays even at a small college that I am afraid to pursue this.
Here's a brief history of my life. I graduated from a small engineering school in michigan with a double major in electrical engineering and physics in 2008. Then I went to graduate school in Arizona for a year working on a PhD in electrical engineering. I struggled with mental illness when I was out there (was eventually diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder) and this forced me to leave the program. I was doing well out there and I regret leaving almost every day. I went back to Michigan (my hometown) and stayed there for a year looking for a job. I could not find anything and I sunk into a deep depression. I decided to go back to grad school in Arizona so I went back. I lasted about 3 weeks there since I was in my deep depression. I felt like I wasn't interested in my courses (device physics) or my research. I was sleeping for up to 18 hours/day. I am now back at home in Michigan and I need to decide what to do with my life.
Part of me wants to go to grad school in physics to get a PhD but I know I won't be able to get into a good graduate program in physics because my PGRE score is low (600 or 35th percentile) and my general GRE is pretty mediocre (first time I took it I got a 660Q 420V 4.0 AW and second time I took it I got a 760Q 320V...I didn't take the writing section the second time). Also, my GPA is pretty mediocre (3.44), and I honestly don't have a laser-like focus on what I want to do in grad school. It is hard for me to write a personal statement because of this. I really don't know what I want to do. Because of this, I think I will only be able to get into a low ranking graduate program (ranked ~100 by us news). I am thinking about wayne state university. I am sort of interested in experimental particle physics but I am afraid I will have difficulty finding a job if I major in this. I could major in condensed matter physics but I am not sure if I am interested in solid state physics anymore. It's what I thought I was interested in the first time I went to grad school but now I am not so sure.
I am also considering doing a part time masters in mechatronic systems engineering (one of the two mechatronics masters programs in the country) at lawrence technological university in michigan. http://www.ltu.edu/engineering/mechanical/mechatronics.asp Do you think this is a good degree program that will open up doors for me? Will people recognize this degree since it's so rare in the united states? The employers I have talked to lately I have had to explain what the degree program is all about. Should I do a MS in electrical and computer engineering instead? Is this degree more marketable?
Finally, perhaps I should just work for a while before going back to school to give myself some time to decide what I want to do. I don't know. All of this is really stressing me out though.
What do you think physicsforums? I know it's hard for other people to make life changing decisions for me without knowing me better, but I am absolutely lost. I honestly can't imagine what I would like to be doing 10 years or 20 years from now. I feel like my ideal job would be to be a physics professor at a small liberal arts college, but it's so difficult to become a professor nowadays even at a small college that I am afraid to pursue this.
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