<p>Do not. Repeat: Do NOT transfer to undergrad where you hope to go to grad school. In physics especially, depts are reluctant to keep their undergrads for grad school. It’s called “academic inbreeding” and the general consensus among top grad schools is that they want to stir up the talent pool and both get their promising undergrads exposure to the wider academic universe and to bring in fresh blood for grad studies.</p>
<p>sylvan–I hear you. Theorists have always been almost unemployable unless they: A) walk on water or B) are willing to move outside physics academia and work in other fields like cryptography/business/banking etc. </p>
<p>DH was strongly discouraged by his grad program (a top 5 in his area) from focussing completely on theory. He will write an occasion theory paper even to this day, but he mostly does basic applied research in solid state. Of the 3 pure theorists he went to grad school with–only 1 is still in physics. He’s prof at a top physics uni now, but it took him about 15 years of postdocs and other employment to get that place.</p>
<p>zandari–keep an open mind. Physics is such a broad field. Some areas are much more employable than others (even for theorists). Hot areas right now are in quantum computing, nanoscience and biophysics. Also there is such a thing as basic research. Technically, basic research is “applied” but there is often new ground-breaking theory involved there too. </p>
<p>As a side note–today’s hottest physics areas are often are boundary-crossing. QC–crosses between computer science, engineering and physics; biophysics crosses between biology, chemistry and physics. Nanoscience is electrical/mechanical engineering, chemistry and physics.</p>