What types of jobs are available for a BS in Physics?

[gravenewworld]

What do they look for in these candidates? Sounds interesting.

HIGH motivation. Analytical/critical thinker. Cockiness. Basically you have to be the guy that you can't push around on top of being good with numbers. My roommate actually tried to recruit me to get me to work where he works because I was a math major. Oh man do I regret not taking him up on the offer now.

 

[user101]

Sorry for hijacking the thread, but are these offers usually extended to people through networking or are they readily available on the websites of companies? or of the stock exchange?

 

[gravenewworld]

Sorry for hijacking the thread, but are these offers usually extended to people through networking or are they readily available on the websites of companies? or of the stock exchange?

I think he got it through either a head hunter or a job fair at my university.

 

[dotman]

You cannot get an engineering job with a physics degree unless you have taken engineering classes or have prior experience in engineering.

I concur with Laura-- this is simply untrue. I'm working in Engineering and have a four year physics degree. I had no prior experience and, to be honest, neither did anyone else. You learn on the job from the old timers, just like everyone else.

There are many paths into engineering, and getting a degree is just one. There are many people who start out as draftsmen. There are many more who become mechanical engineers after many years in the field in various capacities. There's no telling where life will take you.

I see all of these threads, and its like people are looking for a "Win" button. I'm smart, I got a Physics degree, now I should be successful. No degree is like that. No one can make you succeed but you. People say its about who you know, and to some extent, it is; but who you know comes from what you do, i.e., you know everyone because you've been there with all of them. It's all about experience, which is decidedly not what college gives you-- at least not as far as employers are concerned. And they're right.

Because you have no experience, you have to find another way. I could think of a hundred different paths into a well paying job, a well respected job, with a Physics degree. You have to tell them why-- how Physics has shown you that nothing is too difficult to overcome, nothing is too much for you. If there's one thing Physics teaches, it's how to figure things out-- and there's not a company out there who doesn't need people to do that. Bad GPA? So what! No one cares if you can demonstrate that you'll perform. Can't get past HR? Find a smaller company, and get in that way. You just have to be creative.

I'm actually in the reverse situation. I'm going to go back to school-- I want a PhD. And now I have to make that work, and its a tough situation-- I didn't graduate with a 4.0. But I'll tell you what-- I'm far stronger for the training I've received out "in the world", and know there are several paths back into what I want to do. And I'm going to make them work. I've taken my medicine, as mathwonk has said, and I'm better for it.

In any event, if you know what you're looking for, you'll find a way to do it. I work in FL, and I was recently forwarded a job ad from a company who works with NASA, an engineering position. The position is probably still open, I haven't applied yet, although I'm considering it. And here's the kicker-- they're looking for people with little or no experience, and a degree in either Math, Engineering, or Physics. It's a great opportunity, and I'm sure any of you who have posted could compete for this.

The jobs are out there.

 

[cdotter]

Would I be an ideal candidate for an engineering job if I did Physics + CS Minor + select electives? Here are the lists of classes:

Physics Major:
CHM 1111 - GENERAL CHEMISTRY I
CHM 1112 - GENERAL CHEMISTRY II
MA 2231 - CALCULUS I
MA 2232 - CALCULUS II
MA 2233 - CALCULUS III
MA 3280 - LINEAR ALGEBRA AND MATRIX THEORY
MA 3311 - DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS I
MA 3312 - DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS II
PHY 1180 - QUANTITATIVE METHODS FOR THE PHYSICAL SCIENCES
PHY 2210 - GENERAL PHYSICS I
PHY 2211 - GENERAL PHYSICS II
PHY 3311 - MODERN PHYSICS I
PHY 3312 - MODERN PHYSICS II
PHY 3313 - PHYSICAL MECHANICS I
PHY 3315 - ANALOG ELECTRONICS
PHY 3316 - DIGITAL ELECTRONICS

Computer Science Minor:
CIS 1104 - COMPUTER SCIENCE I
CIS 2204 - COMPUTER SCIENCE II
CIS 3301 - DATA STRUCTURES
CIS 3330 - COMPUTER ORGANIZATION

Miscellaneous Electives:
PHY 3319 - INTRODUCTION TO SOLID STATE PHYSICS
PHY 4401 - ELECTRICITY AND MAGNETISM I
PHY 4402 - ELECTRICITY AND MAGNETISM II
PHY 4415 - PHYSICS RESEARCH I
PHY 4416 - PHYSICS RESEARCH II

Do you guys think I would be eligible for an entry level Electrical Engineering position with those classes? I've got the mathematics, the chemistry, the computer science, the electronics, and magnetism, and some research experience if I did all of this (which should be manageable).

 

[dotman]

Would I be an ideal candidate for an engineering job if I did Physics + CS Minor + select electives?

No.

Do you guys think I would be eligible for an entry level Electrical Engineering position with those classes?

Yes.

Seriously, if you want to be an electrical engineer, you should study electrical engineering. If you want to be an ideal candidate, you should study it and intern at a firm a few times during your college career, and receive an offer from them immediately out of school. There are many different kinds of electrical engineers as well-- there are those who design building electrical systems, those who design circuits for electronics, and everything in between. You don't have to know this in advance.

I saw you mention PSU main-- many of my friends went through their branch campus 2+2 programs to get into the main campus, and this was effective. Is this a possibility for you? Another option is to get a four year degree, and go somewhere for a masters in Engineering-- although I'm unsure that will help your salary, it should help your job prospects. There are online programs as well for this kind of thing, especially in Engineering. Check out Georgia Tech, for instance. But the above paragraph would be preferable.

 

[cdotter]

I know some schools offer 3-2 programs, but I haven't see 2-2 programs anywhere.

 

[dotman]

I don't know for sure, didn't go through it. Maybe it's a 3+2 program. That would still be worthwhile IMHO.

Lots of people go for their undergrad degree for five years.

 

[cdotter]

I think I'm just going to go with physics + computer science minor + some electronics electives. According to data at aip.org, a lot of physics undergrads work in either engineering or software. Of course I could just major in EE or CS, but I find the theoretical side more interesting. I know I find physics very interesting, but I'm not sure what I want to do with my physics degree, so I can always 'fall back' on a software job.

 

[Shackleford]

Before I decided to pursue physics, I was going to major in Civil Engineering. After seeing more positive feedback on physics majors doing engineering work, I still might shoot down the CivE route in industry. I would like to go to graduate school for physics as well.

 

[cdotter]

This is a stupid question, but I haven't really found any true answers:

Say I go to graduate school and I do research. Do I get to choose what I want to research? And does the research have to be completely original? I don't understand how I can come up with a completely original idea. What would I be doing on a day to day basis? Spending all day in a laboratory, researching whatever? Does it have to be purely conceptual, or can it be something entirely concrete, such as researching eletromagnetics (building something that utilizes electromagnetics)?

 

[Poop-Loops]

From my limited experience, let me tell you the following:

You decide what you research, mostly. Schools have different research areas, and you get to decide (mostly) what school you will go to. Then when there, you apply to get to the group you want (i.e. the group doing work on gravity, condensed matter, whatever).

When that's done, you're already doing what you want to do, hopefully. But as to the details, the professor you're working for will guide you a long way with it.

Yes, it has to be completely original, that's the whole point. But you won't be expected to make some sort of breakthrough. I think I remember one of the Ph.D. thesiseseses I saw being on mapping some sort of properties of a molecule or something. Something that won't get you in the news, but is just as important to science.

I don't know what you mean by conceptual vs. concrete, though. I mean, some people do theory and work everything out on paper, others go to the lab and try to test it. To test it you'll need machines and stuff. One of the Postdoc's I talked to said that you spend most of your time building your apparatus when you are trying to do an experiment.