Would a major in physics get me anywhere?

xraymancs
Sun, 10 Aug 2014 00:40:47 +0000

The simple and glib answer is that you can do anything with a B.S. in physics. The fact is that you will do something that does not necessarily involve being a “physicist”. Physics is a very broad degree. You touch on topics that cover the range of engineering disciplines as well as applied mathematics and even computer science. This means that you have the knowledge to be able to go into many different fields but you have to sell your skills rather than your degree title. Physics majors work in engineering jobs, in the financial field, in the software industry and many other places. Being a professor is not the only career that you can have with a Ph.D. in physics. There are many research physicists in industry, in government labs and at universities and they don’t have to be professors.

Since you don’t think you want to pursue an academic career, you need to look for internships in your summers. You should look into, among other things, the financial field, radiation health physics, programming, and engineering internships. You can improve your chances in these areas byt taking elective courses which give you those skills that these industries look for. You will probably have at least one programming course. take some more if that is interesting to you. Make sure you know how to use a 3D modeling system to design objects. This will give you an entry into an engineering internship. It is really up to you to show potential employers what you can do and learn. many employers actually like to hire physics majors because they are flexible and have good problem-solving skills.