<p>Hi. I was wondering whether I should double major physics/EE, or major in physics, or major in EE.</p>
<p>I am very interested in physics and math, and both majors are related to them. My intuition is telling me that physics is right for me, but it is also telling me that i will get a better paid job, and easier to get job if i major in EE. I want to challenge myself, so which major is harder: EE or physics?</p>
<p>My main concern with only majoring in EE is that I like all of the topics in physics, and I would feel bad to just have to concentrate in only one area and dropping the rest (ie. mechanics, thermal)</p>
<p>Son thought of double majoring in Mech Eng and Phy and still may. A college professor once told him that by the time he's done with all the ME classes, he will not be that many classes away from a physics major (or minor?) as well. Not sure what truth there is to it.</p>
<p>That's exactly what I was thinking about. I chose ECE, because firstly I had three years of bad luck in physics at high school, so I just hope that ECE would go better. Secondly, I understood that I should be think how to support myself and my family, so physics started to appear an even less appealing major. Thirdly, I would not say that ECE is really a far cry from physics, so after obtaining B.S. in engineering, it would be possible to go to grad school and study physics. Finally, I've just got accepted to a top-notch engineering college, so I started to see it as a sign from above that physics is not for me.</p>
<p>Oh, and I forgot to express my opinion about double-majoring. I have consulted with current students at my college and as they say, engineering itself is a hard major, so double-majoring would mean schedule conflicts, immense work load and limited social life. In addition, the time will come when you have to sacrifice either engineering or physics, in case you want to be a good professional.
As one of them said, it is very hard to graduate with two B.S.; B.S and B.A. or B.A. and B.A. is fine but not two B.Ss.</p>
<p>Take a few classes of each and see what you like. People do change their minds quite a bit in college. At my school, at least, it is fairly common for people to get physics minors because it'd only be an additional two classes on top of the engineering coursework.</p>
<p>Well you see, I will be attending U of Melbourne this fall, and as many of you may already know, the australian educational system is not very flexible. I dont think you can change from a double major to a single major there, unless you are willing to take extra classes or extra semester.</p>
<p>One question: Is engineering (particularly electrical) kinda "theoretical"? I mean i like the theories in physics, I just dont quite enjoy the practical part.</p>
<p>How about a minor in physics? Or if you can't handle the workload of even a minor, just use your electives to take physics.</p>
<p>I don't know if your school has a mechatronics program or specialization, but at mine (University of Waterloo, it's in Canada), there is a program and option (sort of like a minor) in mechatronics. It's a fusion of EE and ME, and ME is where you get a taste of the other fields of physics.</p>
<p>EE can be very practical or very theoretical, as with most engineering fields. Not all elecs end up doing the exact same thing... once you choose a major, you're still a long way from picking a career, even in engineering, because there are many disciplines within each field.</p>
<p>Another question: If one chose to double major EE/physics in the US, how long will it take to finish both degrees, will it normally take 4 years, or more?</p>