Hello, I recently got into UCI for physics and I’m trying to decide whether or not I should go to UCI (my dream school) for physics OR San Jose State Univeristy for Mechanical Engineering (my dream major).
I wouldn’t mind majoring in physics (applied physics concentration), but there are no jobs in it! My dream is to work for NASA or SpaceX, but from my research there aren’t any jobs in physics for those industries!
My worry is that as an applied physics major I would be a half-assed physicist and an even worse engineer.
PLEASE, I would love to hear your input on this topic! Thank you all for your time!!
“There are no jobs for it” you know, so many of the courses you take in any physics course overlap a lot with mechanical engineering. This isn’t about marketability of your major, it’s about your ability to sell yourself. They are a bit similar, so just work on your communication skills to sell yourself to employers. Engineering IS basically applied physics, anyways. If you want, you could just take electives or courses in engineering during your time at UCI to attain similar skills to engineers. You’ll be taking the same calculus based physics sequence and calculus sequence so perhaps down the road you’d be able to transfer. Anyways, to say there are no jobs in physics at NASA or SpaceX is premature. The premises of these two institutions are founded on physics, literally. Elon Musk WAS a physics major, and he started SpaceX. I apologize for the pun but you just have to apply what you learn in applied physics to whatever employment description your job finds have and sell your skill set. It’s so possible. Lots of physics majors end up working in engineering jobs. It’s not the end of the world. Sell, sell, sell.
@otoribashi well so in STEM in general, all most all of the courses over lap and those would only be the prereqs. I am a transfer student and have taken a lot of engineering courses already. If you looked at the applied physics requirements you would see how to be an applied physics major you have to take engineering courses, but it is only six. I have already taken 4 and like I said it is only the prereqs. and I have already researched jobs for the field in both those organizations as well. Also, Elon Musk being a physics major does not have anything to do with this, he started a business and became a business man, not an engineer, although he is a badass no matter what. I might be able to secure an engineering position but not like a real engineer.
@ayymig i think as with any field, you don’t always necessarily need to major in it to get a job in it. that’s where internships and all of that comes in. you try to build your skill set around what you want to do. just because you major in physics doesn’t mean your only career options are being a physicist. many end up working in finance for example because of the math and analytical skills they learn. you just have to try to sell yourself on those skills. and well even if you do get an engineering position, you can try to rise through the company to become a ‘real engineer’, learn on the job, or always return to get a masters in engineering or something. is it possible for you to minor in engineering?
I agree with all the other posts. As a physics professor, I see our majors getting jobs in all sorts of fields. It just depends on how they sell themselves and the skills they develop. As a physics major, you would leran some programming and model building andif you added some design courses to your program, you could very well work in the aerospace industry.
@otoribashi Thank you for your input. Idk since i’m ignorant about the field or just the whole job market in general i’m just scared, but I decided that I will go to UCI and if i can’t change majors I will make sure to kill it in the physics department!
@xraymancs Thank you, I you guys have re-assured me that it will be okay, I will try and take as many engineering classes as I can if I could. I do not mind studying physics because I wanted to do my graduates in it later, but being an engineer has been my dream for a very long time. Like I said If I can’t change majors I will use all my resources and as otori mentioned do as many internships as possible. UCI Is the school that I have been trying to get into and I think that I should take the risk of going and I hope that they switch my major.