Career Opportunity

Tips for physics majors

Here are a few general tips to help you succeed as a physic major:

• Read new concepts in your textbook before they are introduced in lectures.

• Attend all your classes and take detailed notes.

• Complete all classwork and homework assignments.

• Review textbooks and notes from lectures to make sure you understand all the steps of derivations.

Physics major skills list

Here are a few skills a student considering a major in physics should have:

• Research and analysis skills
• Mathematical skills
• Detail-oriented
• Ability to work on a team
• Time-management skills
• Knowledge of information technology (IT)
• Problem-solving and experimental skills
• Excellent written and
• verbal communication

Jobs for Physics Majors

Here is a list of several different career opportunities available to physics majors:

1. Technical writer
National average salary: $20.03 per hour
Primary duties: Create instruction manuals, how-to guides, diagrams, journal articles and other documents that communicate complex and technical information in an easy to understand manner to inform consumers how a product works.

2. Science teacher
National average salary: $26.75 per hour
Primary duties: Provide instruction to students that help them understand and explore science concepts. Science teachers may be responsible for creating lesson plans, providing instruction, presenting demonstrations, planning experiments and grading assignments that measure the progress of a student’s learning.

3. Forensic scientist
National average salary: $66,898 per year
Primary duties: Perform forensic research and review and analyze evidence from crime scenes that was gathered by crime scene investigators. Forensic scientists typically work within forensic laboratories.

4. Professor
National average salary: $67,429 per year
Primary duties: Provide academic instruction to students at the undergraduate or postgraduate level. In addition to providing instruction to students, professors may also participate in research and publish scholarly articles and books. Professors work in educational institutions such as colleges, universities and trade schools.

5. Data analyst
National average salary: $68,030 per year
Primary duties: Review and analyze data collected by businesses and organizations and use the information to help their company make better-informed business decisions. Data analysts may analyze several types of data including market research, logistics, sales figures and more.

6. Research analyst
National average salary: $70,679 per year
Primary duties: Perform research and analyze, interpret and present the information gathered from their research to their company to help them make better-informed decisions. Research analysts may research and analyze data related to business operations, market trends and changes, finance and accounting, economics and customer satisfaction.

7. Web developer
National average salary: $72,313 per year
Primary duties: Manage how a website looks and performs by using coding language to create the layout, design and functionality of the website. Front-end web developers are responsible for the look of a website, while back-end developers are responsible for the internal content and administrative components of the web application.

8. Design engineer
National average salary: $79,797 per year
Primary duties: Research and develop ideas for the creation of new products and the development of existing products to improve their efficiency and performance.

9. Systems analyst
National average salary: $79,823 per year
Primary duties: Solve business problems using information technology by analyzing existing business processes, identifying areas that need improvement, developing systems and processes to create change and implement and train others to use these new processes and systems.

10. Research engineer
National average salary: $81,491 per year
Primary duties: Work in laboratory or office environments conducting experiments and analyzing processes to find the best material, product or method to use for an application. Research engineers may also be responsible for writing summaries of test results, preparing manuals and guidelines and presenting information to project managers.

11. Meteorologist
National average salary: $83,421 per year
Primary duties: Observe, understand, forecast and explain the earth’s weather and climate and how atmospheric conditions affect earth and life on our planet.

12. Research scientist
National average salary: $83,967 per year
Primary duties: Work in laboratory environments to perform controlled investigations, experiments and trials and gather and analyze information from those investigations, experiments and trials.

13. Scientist
National average salary: $85,914 per year
Primary duties: Work in laboratory environments and perform research and experiments to understand how things work and discover new concepts. Scientists observe, measure and communicate the results of their research and experiments to others.

14. Application developer
National average salary: $86,470 per year
Primary duties: Work with a team to plan, create, test and program applications for computers, tablets, mobile phones and other types of electronic devices.

15. Product development engineer
National average salary: $86,983 per year
Primary duties: Oversee the design, development and testing of new products to meet the needs of their company and the company’s customers.

16. Process engineer
National average salary: $87,674 per year
Primary duties: Design, develop and modify chemical, physical and biological industrial processes for the creation of products such as oil, gas and food and drinks. Process engineers are also commonly referred to as chemical engineers.

17. Radiation safety officer
National average salary: $90,295 per year
Primary duties: Oversee the radiological safety related to the handling, use and storage of radioactive materials by identifying radiation problems, recommending and approving corrective actions and ensuring continuous compliance with safety regulations.

18. Materials engineer
National average salary: $90,497 per year
Primary duties: Use materials such as plastic, metal and ceramic to develop, process and test new materials to create a range of products such as biomedical devices, computer parts and golf clubs.

19. Nuclear engineer
National average salary: $90,995 per year
Primary duties: Design and develop nuclear equipment, oversee operations and maintenance of nuclear power plants, ensure safety regulations are followed and develop new uses for nuclear material and nuclear energy.

20. R&D engineer
National average salary: $92,781 per year
Primary duties: Research and test new product concepts, develop new products and make improvements to existing products. Research and development engineers usually work in office environments.

21. Sales engineer
National average salary: $94,490 per year
Primary duties: Sells complex technical or scientific products and services to businesses. Sales engineers need a comprehensive understanding of how their products function and the scientific processes that make their products work to effectively pitch their products to new customers.

22. Aeronautical engineer
National average salary: $99,946 per year
Primary duties: Study the aerodynamic performance of aircraft and propulsion systems and use the information from their research to design new aircraft products and propulsion systems. Aeronautical engineers assess project proposals to determine whether they are both financially and technically feasible and can achieve their goals through safe operations.

23. Electronics engineer
National average salary: $100,169 per year
Primary duties: Inspect, evaluate, design and develop electronic equipment. Electronics engineers may design electronic components, software, systems and products, analyze a customer’s needs and develop an electrical system plan, evaluate existing systems and make recommendations for design modifications or equipment repair and inspect electronic equipment to ensure they meet safety standards and regulations.

24. Optical engineer
National average salary: $104,106 per year
Primary duties: Design, calibrate and fine-tune optical systems for cameras, telescopes and lens systems, and develop circuitry and components for devices that use optical technology.

25. System engineer
National average salary: $104,541 per year
Primary duties: Install, configure, test, maintain, monitor and manage operating systems, application software, system management tools and infrastructure to ensure optimal performance, security and backup.

26. Software engineer
National average salary: $106,496 per year
Primary duties: Use the principles of computer science and mathematical analysis to design and develop computer software such as operating systems, business applications, network controls and computer games.

27. Instrumentation engineer
National average salary: $107,881 per year
Primary duties: Design, develop, install, test, maintain and manage equipment used to monitor and control engineering systems, machinery and processes to ensure they operate safely, efficiently and effectively.

28. Data scientist
National average salary: $121,897 per year
Primary duties: Work closely with a business’ stakeholders to understand their needs and goals and analyze data to understand how the data can be used to help them achieve their goals. Data scientists create algorithms and predictive models to extract the data a business needs and then analyze the data and share their insights to help the company achieve their goals.

29. Patent agent
National average salary: $130,796 per year
Primary duties: Provide advice and assist inventors with patent applications. A patent agent must be licensed by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and may provide inventors with their opinions about patentability and help inventors in preparing and filing the documentation needed to apply for a patent.

30. Quantitative analyst
National average salary: $151,716 per year
Primary duties: Use quantitative methods of analysis to help businesses make financial and operational decisions. Quantitative analysts also create the algorithms used within the software used to determine when an investment hits a level of profitability. They often work for insurance companies, investment banks, asset managers, private equity firms and hedge funds and help them manage risk, value securities, identify profitable investment opportunities and develop pricing models and risk evaluation strategies.

(Note: All the above information is collected from Google)