<p>You can get a good idea of the opportunities available to Carleton physics students (as well as students in any other department) by reading the online departmental newsletter. For physics, the newsletter is called Radiations and can be viewed at <a href=“http://apps.carleton.edu/curricular/physics/news/[/url]”>http://apps.carleton.edu/curricular/physics/news/</a>. The newsletters list things like research opportunities as well as external internships and REUs, departmental talks, post-grad stuff, and special events. I would encourage you to look through back issues of Radiations to see if Carleton has what you’re looking for as far as physics goes. I can tell you at least that the quality of physics instruction here is great (having dabbled in a couple of physics classes myself). If you get a research position in the physics department over the summer or as an independent study during the year, it will probably be as a rising junior or senior unless you’ve managed to take a lot of physics classes early in your Carleton career, and you will NOT be just cleaning equipment–those kinds of department assistant jobs are work-study positions, not research. I also know that pretty much all of the physics majors who intend to go to grad school in physics did research at Carleton or through an REU at some point, and so if that’s in your future, if you want it, it’s there. The department knows that people seriously looking at grad school need research experience and will hold your hand in trying to find it if you let them know that’s what you’re after.</p>
<p>As far as not being a liberal artsy person goes, I feel you there. I’m a math person, always have been, and I came to Carleton knowing I wanted to major in math and never changed my mind. Believe me, if you don’t want to take too many non-sciencey classes, nobody is going to make you because the distribution requirements are pretty softbatch. I’m technically one class away from finishing the math major requirements (aside from the comprehensive project) and I’m only a sophomore, but I’m still also one class away from finishing my distribution requirements. I feel like I have a good personal balance of classes I’m supercomfortable in like math/physics/CS and then more liberal artsy classes, it’s easy to do that here with the whole 3 classes/3 terms setup.</p>
<p>All in all I encourage you to visit before choosing where to go if that is an option for you, and definitely go to the physics department office (top floor of Olin Hall) and see if there are any profs holding office hours who can give you information about research in physics at Carleton.</p>