physics/chemistry/math in university...your stories/experience/advice?

[David101]

hey guys, this isn't really highly technical but i thoghut i would get alot better responses from the guys over here

ive been lurking the highly technical forums for some time now and love the discussions that take place here, lots of the stuff is very interesting and are things i would also like to do as a career etc. or just to learn about. (never posted though lol.) anyways im going into gr.12 next year and im gonna have to make a choice on what to take in university/college. Ive always been strong in math and loved science, never liked english or art or any of that lol. there would be MANY things i would LOVE to do and learn about in university (mainly science/math/comps etc.) and i download lots of stuff to keep me intrigued.

anyways just wondering if you science/math guys (i like comps too but the computer engineering thread was very good on that ) would just post something about how you decided to take that path, how your time was in it, etc. etc. im thinking to go into soemthing chemistry related casue although i love math, looking at equations for the rest of my life just doesn't seems like it would keep my interest.(i know theres more to it than that, i guess, but still ) i love physics too, i always find myself thinking for like hours on things, but from what everyone says it just seems like it would be very very difficult (doesnt stop me from considering it though

so anyways sorry for the typos and stuff lol. if people could just post how their university/college educations went in these fields, their expeiences etc. i would love that and really appreciate it. i need to get as much info as i can so i can try and choose the right path for me from day one (although switching wouldn't be a problem either in the future...paying for the knowledge is good enough

thanks again, eagerly awaiting responses

 

[LeatherNeck]

I received an undergrad degree in Nuclear Enginneering and a graduate degree in Electrical Engineering.

I decided, as a Junior in college, that my lifelong claim that I was going to be a doctor someday didn't make much sense. I really didn't like Biology much and, although I did fine in Chemistry, never really found it much interesting. I always found physics and math (especially calculus) most interesting - hence an engineering degree seemed most appropriate.

I'm glad I majored in an Engineering degree in both undergrad and graduate work. I wish I had more of a passion for understanding the underlying technology in undergrad work but was more concerned with getting a check in the box. My four year break before I began graduate work (it wasn't really a break as it was my first 4 years in the Marine Corps) helped me to focus. Learning at age 26 I found was much easier to focus and I understood engineering and the way things worked better in my graduate work.

Having spent 15 years in the Marine Corps I more or less use my engineering skills to solve/understand things related to Communications and Information Systems. I don't always have the time to delve into technical details as I have far too much to manage and lead but I have the confidence that I can understand it given the time.

Two things I would recommend if you pursue any kind of technical degree:

1. Learn how to write - technical people think it is not important. It is very important.
2. Do not devalue the liberal arts requirements. I love philosophy and history now and wish I had applied myself more to them in school instead of viewing them as a necessary evil to fulfill my degree requirements.

 

[BitByBit]

I managed to get A-levels (whatever the US equivalent is) in Physics, Math's and Politics and am due to join the RAF as a Communication and Information Systems Specialist in less than a month.
The trouble is, I've signed for the minimum nine years' service, which will make study difficult, and I hoped to be qualified in a similar field by the time I leave.
I suppose it depends on the qualifications I attain while in the RAF (hopefully they'll be nationally recognised!), or whether I'll be able to fund a course at the time.

 

[asearchforreason]

Well I'm not sure exactly what you're looking for here. I just finished my BS in Electrical Engineering from Ohio State with a minor in Physics and starting grad school in EE next month. Engineering is a LOT time if you take it seriously, but you sound like someone with the interest to put forth the effort.

I can sort of compare engineering vs. science since I took several Physics courses for my minor. Honestly, I would say engineering is a bit harder, but I'm probably biased; they are both time consuming. If you are sure you *don't* want to get a PhD, I would strongly recommend going into an engineering discipline. The things you learn in undergrad will be much more valuable to employers than the things that a Physics undergrad knows. i.e. it's nice to know exactly how the charge on a conductive sphere will distribute itself, but if you can't use that knowledge to design an antenna, then you are not worth much to a company. However, planning on a PhD and/or a research career does not eliminate engineering either. I am planning on both of these things in EE. Engineering is obviously the more practical. It is applications focused, but don't let that fool you into thinking it is less complex. Finally, I also found the people in Physics to be "weirder" on average than engineering students, take that for what it's worth.

I don't really know what kind of advice to give about what to choose. I guess I would say pick an engineering discipline that sounds interesting for your first year. Try to explore the different departments and find out what kind of research is going on. If you can get any kind of research assistant job early on, take it even if you're working for free (unless of course you can't afford the time b/c of the need to support yourself). That will really help you find out what actual engineers/scientists do in the field and what you like the most. Talk to professors, etc. I don't know what else to tell you but I could try to answer any questions you have.

 

[BigPoppa]

If you don't want to go into a math field because staring at equations is boring, chemistry and physics aren't going to be much different.

 

[glorygunk]

I graduated with a Bioengineering degree and can solidly tell you that engineering is just so much cooler than the liberal arts. I personally am a math/science kinda guy as well, and I never understood how people could argue/debate for four years and call it a degree Sorry if I offended any of you.

There is no doubt that you will work a lot harder as an engineer than otherwise, but if you love the physics and math, then only a fool would consider otherwise. Don't go into college undeclared because from everyone I've talked to, you tend to wallow in doubt and indecision. A good major for you would be Mechanical Engineering. It's more practical than the straight Physics or Math major, which means it's easier to find a job when you get out.

Good luck and hope you choose the right path!

 

[David101]

thanks for all the replies guys. I guess i see what you guys are saying. i would love to go into physics but i don't think strictly physics would be good for me either. I always like taking stuff apart/building stuff etc, and so mechanical engineering or maybe chemical engineering might be soemthing i will go into. i would love to go for both though, and if i get an engineering degreee first and can get a great job, maybe afert i can go for physics just for the joy of learning . i wanna discover something or make inventions or something lol (haha). we will see. astronomy has always interested me, but my high school doesn't have a course so insetad i come here at highly technical, wikipedia and other physics/atronomy sites .

thanks again for all the replies guys.

 

[unipidity]

If you are going to do physics, you *have* to love mathematics. Popular physics is very exciting and interesting, but it has ah heck all to do with degree physics. Does the sound of complex number integration excite you? Tensor theory? Legendre polynomials?

It doesnt me. Which is why my physics degree was probably a mistake (though many modules, like Astro, are really great). Though Chem and Bio would have been far worse, imo. Chemstry is bad because it seems to be either a lot of material with no great unifying ideas (organic) or just specialised physics taught in a wierd way (physical), and none of my chemist friends even pretend to enjoy any of it. Bio seems more interesting, but I view it as much less rigorous. Materials science is a possibility, though like phys it tends to be on the dry side.

Engineering (at least in the UK) offers massive scope for choosing a specialisation. Though structural mechanics, for example, is probably compulsory. Though easy. Chem Eng seems tolerable, but will end you up in the oil industry; will you sell your soul? If so, it probably more lucrative to become a lawyer

 

[icelazer]

I was ambitious when I started college, I was going to major in CS and Math and minor in chemistry and physics. I soon discovered that I hated physics and taking a 2nd semester chem class with 1000 other people didn't appeal to me. I ended up with my CS and Math majors and all the pre-MBA requirements finished. If you're going for CS/CE/EE at all, you'll have to take some physics, math, and chem classes... or at least you can use them as technical electives. Decide what you want to do then. Obviously entry level undergrad classes aren't what a major is all about, but if you don't enjoy those, don't expect the material to get that much better. In my opinion, Math is the basis for all, and for every major you mentioned you're going to need the background, if not the actual knowledge itself. In math, you'll learn that equations are your friend, it's the proofs that are the tough part.

 

[ItTheCow]

One of my TA's once told a joke: Physics is the divine science. Chemistry is physics without knowledge, and mathematics is physics without purpose.

It's funnily true if you ask me. I'll be entering my second year of studies in physics, so I can't really comment on the long-term aspect of things. I certainly don't know all your interests, but you can always consider aeronautical engineering. It combines a few things you mentioned you like - assembly/disassembly (you'll probably use CAD, but oh well), astronomy, and physics.

 

[rocadelpunk]

heh weird, I'm undergrad EE at Ohio State as well : P

My favorite classes so far have been math. While I am not always stellar or get straight A's, there's something beautiful about watching numbers/proofs yada yada work out...to see the very complex become simple in a sense.

Then the engineering part is applying the goods instead of thinking in 20 dimensions : D

 

[biohazard329]

im a 3rd yr chem eng with semiconductor manufacturing option at UCLA

ive taken a bunch of different courses, even some upper division physics for fun

-i really wouldnt mind majoring in physics, but im straight up just not smart enough, the one course (asides from introductory physics) on electrodyamics i took was fascinating but quite daunting, 90% of the time i had no clue what the teacher was talking about.

-i love chemistry a lot, and would have majored in chem, but the practical applications/manufacturing processes seemed cooler.

-bio, is well, bio. it's cool and all, but crammed full of cutthroat premeds (at least at ucla)

-liberal arts are very interesting, and i enjoy reading/writing a lot, just majoring in it, seems like a waste of time. (no offense meant)

basically, i personally like engineering the best, chemical to be precise

 

[TraumaRN]

Well I'm going to post as basically the only non engineering major here, however I figure I could add my two cents, I'm in Nursing School going to be a junior this year, and on time to graduate in 2007 and I'll say that chemistry can either be sinfully boring or sinfully exciting all depending on your professors my organic chem class was amazing because the prof was amazing, a 45 year old palestinian emigrate who spoke 5 languages and had a mission in life to make 'american kids unstupid' Great class I wish I could have taken a few more with him, and speaking of him, and what you can do in chemistry he teaches at 3 universities and runs a cancer research lab funded by the NIH.

However chemistry can be a little rough as I broswe through the pages of the pharmacology book that I'll be using this fall in my pharm class.

Bio on the other hand can be interesting too depending on what you study, obviously with my soon to be obtained nursing degree I studied alot about the human body which is extremely fascinating and probably the most unpredictable entity around.....

That being said just aim high, there are thousands of different things you can study in college and take advantage of everyone of them, and like someone said above, dont skimp on the general education classes you can learn much from those classes as well. Remember in colllege you are supposed to become a well rounded citizen, at least thats what they like to say around here.

 

[David101]

thanks for the replies guys. if only i could learn everything..lol.(or try to). i try to do what i can in like history/english but they just weren't so good for me. (i went into world history thinkking id love it, learning abotu all those ancient civs, had some good times, but it really wasn't all that good. lol) i find myself shooting chalk and thinking about my physics/chemistry classes instead of watching the movies lol.

but anyways im thinking i will do something on the engineering side where i can find a decent job that pays well, then afterwards go back or learn through books whatever interests me. even when im looking at stuff on the net, i usually have like 4 windows open on all this cool stuff and swtich back and forth. i dont really focus on one thing and i think thats bad for me lol, but i still love thinking and learning about it. (i think i have a low attention span or something. i still get 90+ at school but its weird..lol)

anyways thanks very much for the repleis guys. im reading at university sites abotu this stuff, but it seems so much better when you can tlak to someone and get their experiences. i really appreciate the posts. thanks again

 

[David101]

and oh someone posted abotu the physics/math/chem stuff. i dunno how it is in university, or in u.s highschools (im in canada) but so far in gr.11--bio is just memorizing stuff with 5% "understanding". chem is like 50/50 and physics/math is like 90% understanding and 10% memorizing. which is what i love. but i think once i get to university it will get so hard that i will want to memorize and not understand. everyone said highschool math would get hard, this and that, lol. im thinking university is the real deal, so i guess my question is, is it 10x harder than high school? i think i will have to pull up my socks for it lol.

thanks.

 

[coomar]

i'm a physics major in canada, higher-end chemistry is math (differential equations) and 6 hour labs, physics is not so much memorization (which is more engineering), a lot of my finals are open-book (though this was true for some of the engineering courses), i had to take the 2nd year EE courses and physics is harder, electrodynamics might be the hardest course in university

if your thinking about physics, you need to concentrate on math, high school physics make sure you understand whats going on, the degree is a lot easier if you get your maths done early in university, a lot of time profs will reference to stuff you don't know, I wasn't required to take stats but it really helps (thermodynamics and quantum theory)

high school bio is straight memorization, first year bio is still a lot of memorization but from what I've seen, bio labs are not that bad, chem labs are though

engineering will load you with a lot of work, I remember friends having assignments/ quizzes everyday while physics tends to be more focusing on self-learning (as opposed to problem-based), I would try and get into co-op if you do engineering or physics though, the reference and job experience are great, as well, after 3 years of physics you can work for department of defence (in the summer), I don't think many people apply for it

 

[Def]

I recently graduated from Georgia Tech with a BS in Mechanical Engineering. I think to really enjoy an engineering degree you have to possess a passion for the basic theory of that branch of engineering. For myself, I liked knowing how physical things worked, and how things were "done" in the real world. ME was a good way to get a grasp of these things and learn about things I saw as "cool" even before high school.

One thing I will say, if you go into engineering be prepared to like math. Some people have a very skewed perception of what engineering entails, and they find themselves in their second or third year switching to another major and having 3+ years more school because they thought "only the core classes had to do with math." Hah - the math just keeps coming, and it gets more complex as you go as a general rule.


I start my first real job soon for Lockheed Martin, working on the cooling systems of the F/A-22 and Joint Strike Fighter. To some that sounds really boring, but I couldn't be more excited!

 

[rocadelpunk]

wow, that's awesome Def.

I've always wanted to work for Lockheed or some big defense company

maybe CIA too : P