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Career Opportunities

Both large and small companies actively recruit physics majors because of their strong problem-solving abilities. Also, the computer and mathematical skills acquired by physics majors make them attractive to companies. Other employers of new physics bachelors are the federal government, state governments, the military, and high schools.

Professional physicists have excellent job prospects in our technological society. An idea of current industrial opportunities is available online: career information for professional physicists is available from the American Physical Society employment statistics are available from the American Institute of Physics. Physics is also a fantastic path to a career in data science: here is a guide from discoverdatascience.org which gives ideas and information about types of data science careers.

Common paths include a postdoctoral fellowship, research associate at an academic institution, or research in a government lab. While your Ph.D. advisor can assist with connections, it is a very good idea to try and build your own connections during your research work, by meeting with scientists at conferences and professional meetings. Many conferences also hold job fairs, which are also worth attending.