Undergraduate Physics Major Graduate School Postdoctoral Research Faculty Position Path to an Academic Career Main goal Prepare for graduate school Take as many physics courses as you can within reason ID: 633186
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Slide1
Sophomore Seminar
Academic Career in PhysicsSlide2
Undergraduate Physics Major
Graduate School
Postdoctoral ResearchFaculty Position
Path to an Academic CareerSlide3
Main goal: Prepare for graduate school
Take as many physics courses as you can (within reason)
Get advice from your class advisor on courses
Try to get as much as possible out of each course
Prepare to take the Physics GREGeneral + Physics subject exam (physics most important)First step: learn as much physics as possibleAt some level, your Physics score will determine graduate schools you can get intoThe best schools use strict cuts on GRE as starting point to filter applicants
UndergraduateSlide4
GRE Information online:
http://www.ets.org/gre/subject/about/content/
physicshttp://www.ets.org/gre
/
Take the exam in Fall of senior year, or Junior Spring if you feel comfortable with the materialAllow time to take exam twice if possible, in case you have troublee.g., illness, some other sort of disruption Senior seminar and Dept. study groups will help you prepareCan download free practice exam
No reason not to download and flip through now, just to get an idea what to expect
GRE (Continued)Slide5
Physics GRE Topics
… some of the questions are, well, random and very specific.
Best to review broadlySlide6
Apply late fall/early spring of senior year
Keys to getting accepted:
Transcript and gradesLetters of recommendation
Especially
from research experience/summer REUsGRE scores (especially physics)Picking a graduate school: Important decisionDepends a lot on field(s) of study you think you might want to pursueIntangibles are importantRelationship with advisor (more in a moment)
Graduate student
classmatesDepartmental atmosphere
(happiness is important)
Ask professors for advice!
Physics Graduate SchoolSlide7
Most physics programs focus on Ph.D.
S
tay at one school the entire timeTypically takes 5-7 years
Physics graduate school
should be freeIn fact, you usually are paid a modest stipend while a studentIn return, you serve as either teaching assistant or research assistantIf you are not offered a TA or RA, probably don’t want to go to that schoolIf you can win a national fellowship (i.e. NSF) for graduate study, big plus!
Higher salary, no teaching responsibilities
Applications for these are due
before
the grad school ones
Take classes and do research
Classes mostly done in first 2 years
Focus is on research with a thesis advisor
End goal: Produce a Ph.D. thesis
Original researchGuided by a professor who serves as advisor to research (and often career and life….)
Graduate School BasicsSlide8
Year 1
Taking core graduate classes (Quantum, Math methods, E&M—Jackson, mechanics)
Typically supported by TA
Exploring research areas, looking for a graduate advisor
Year 2Taking advanced classes, especially in subfield (e.g. particle, nuclear, condensed matter, etc.)Continue TA or start RA (if working with an advisor with sufficient funding.Year 3-5+Done with most classesRA, unless advisor doesn’t have enough funds (otherwise TA)Note: Typically work on research through summers—no more summer break!
TimeLineSlide9
Exact requirements vary among institutions
Courses:
Core graduate curriculum
Electives: both within specialty and outside (breadth)
Qualifying Exam (sometimes called other names)Written physics exam that must be passed in early yearsFocuses on advanced undergrad/core graduate curriculum (i.e. mechanics, E&M, stat mech., quantum.Difficulty and scope varies widely among institutionsCandidacy exam (some schools don’t have this):Oral (and sometimes written) in specialtyUsually: purpose to evaluate whether you’re pursuing
a viable
thesis
Ph.D. Thesis
Written document: ~100-400 pages
Defense: oral presentation and Q&A session
By this point, you are
THE
world expert on topic!
To GraduateSlide10
Theory
Working on calculating/solving
VERY
math intensive: Study all the math you can!
May be more computational or pen and paperExperiment
Measuring things
Need to have good grasp of statistics, electronics, and computer programming
Often better funding: more chance of RA, less of being TA as senior student
Theory
vs
Experiment
Typically choose theory
vs
experiment early onSlide11
You are now “Dr. So-and-so”
You can make your friends/siblings call you “Dr.”
Your parents may
call you this whether you want them to or notYou are not a professor yet!Need a faculty positionDepending on goals, may need to do one or more post-doctoral research positions. (Postdocs for short)Analogy: Grad Student = “Apprentice”
Postdoc = “Journeyman”
Professor/Scientist = “Master”
After Graduate SchoolSlide12
Perform research
full time under
guidance of faculty memberTemporary position: 2-6 years
Sometimes will do two (or even three) before finding permanent position (e.g.
faculty, lab scientist)Salary typically about 2x greater than graduate stipendOften asked to do research tasks faculty can’t do because of teaching responsibilities:Live at remote experimental facilityTravel to different labs for experiments“Visibility” or “becoming known” to other members of the field is a big part of this stageShould include high-profile talks at conferences, leadership positions
Forms basis for “next step” in career
PostdocSlide13
Teaching and research performed at university
Balance between teaching and research determined by type of institution (see next slide)
TimelineAssistant Professor: Initially hired for limited term contract: either 6 years or 3 years + 3 years (with renewal decision in between)
After 6 years: tenure decision
Establish national research reputation + sufficient to excellent teaching: given permanent position: Associate ProfessorFail to do so: contract not renewed—dismissed from universityFull Professor:Establish international research reputationService to the universityTypically after ~6 years as associate professor
Faculty PositionSlide14
Research University
Postdoc required
Spend ≥ ½ time on research
Teach 1 course per semester
Supervise graduate studentsTeaching assistants to help with grading, help sessions etc.Liberal-Arts School
Postdoc optional
Research often “on your own time” or limited to summers
Teach
≥2
courses per semester
Only work with undergraduates
Limited access to teaching assistants
Faculty PositionSlide15
Frankly, challenging to get academic job
Numbers:
Physics Ph.D.’s graduated per year in US: 1554 (2009)
Number of
Physics faculty retirements per year (2006-8): 378Number of Physics faculty openings per year in US: 705 (2008)Number of new Physics faculty hires per year: 563 (2007)Openings in field can vary significantly depending on circumstancesExample: plunge in HEP openings when SSC canceled
May not have luxury of being picky about where in country (or world) you seek employment
Will need a back-up
plan
Luckily, physics is good training for lots of things…
Job ProspectsSlide16
If you want a teaching and research position at a top university (like ND), cannot apply for any faculty
opening
only opening in your specific field
Take (as example) my field (experimental high energy physics)
Over last few years:~ 15 faculty offers made per year in US HEP experimentCompare toNFL draft: 24000 Div 1 players: 224 players / year (32 in first round)NBA draft: 4800 Div 1 players: 60 players / year (30 in first round)
Getting a faculty position at a research university is not easy
You
can do it, but be prepared for the challenge
Work hard!
Have a backup plan
Another PerspectiveSlide17
Graduate School: 4-6 yearsPostdoc: 2-6 years
Assistant Professor (before tenure): 6 years
Total: 12-18 years from undergradYou will “finish” the process at age 34-40 (assuming you graduate from college at age 22
), where “finish” just means “tenure”
Be prepared to be significantly “behind” your peers who go into private sector in terms of career advancementBe aware that part of the way through the process, you may not be able to move to next level (e.g. unable to find faculty position after 6 years of postdoc)Being aware of this timeline is key to avoid disappointment
Timeline for a Faculty PositionSlide18
Absolutely best job in the whole world!
Job responsibilities include:
Plumbing the depths of the universe to wrest away its secrets
Interacting with and guiding brightest young minds US has to offer
Communicating your enthusiasm and excitement regarding physics to the world at largeOther benefitsComplete freedom regarding research path (and largely teaching too)No one keeping track of hours, activities, etc.Flexible schedule outside academic school yearDiscounts on football tickets, tuition, bookstore, etc.You will love your job and never be bored for rest of your life
(many profs work past retirement age and then become professor emeritus: still have office and do research but no teaching/service—and of course, you’re retired…)
Benefits of Academic CareerSlide19
Constant need to self-fund
Research is paid for by grants you write
No productivity = no grant money = no research
So, being your own boss means that you work all of the time
Career/Family balance can be trickyMany competing responsibilitiesAn academic department is a cooperativeCommittees have to do work or nothing functionsTeaching: very important but time-consumingAll of this takes time away from researchSort of like being an undergraduate againToo many things to do in too little timePriority/time management, triage techniques, efficiency become key
Exhilarating, but Exhausting!
Cautions about an Academic CareerSlide20
The end
Questions?