Phd Definition and 1000 Threads

Hi, this is my first time using the Physics Forums so please let me know if this question belongs somewhere else. I'm a senior undergraduate at a mid-size institution in the United States seeking to purse a PhD in High Energy Theoretical physics or Quantum Information/Computing. I'm aware these...

What advice would you give a first-year PhD student in physics? Another question: If you could go back and do your PhD again, what would you do differently/better?

I have a math degree and currently pursuing a BS in physics, I've been offered a job as a data scientist with occasional machine learning stuff. 1) Would this be helpful for my career in physics? If yes then how? (I'm aware that machine learning is being used in various areas of physics, but...

So if I'm understanding correctly, companies provide grants to universities to conduct certain research. The professors oversee the grants and have PhD student help contribute to the research under that grant. Based on this, it seems that PhD students don't conduct research "any question" they...

I already have an MSc from outside the EU. But, I also have an incomplete CS degree from Poland which I dropped out of. European Ph.D. schools often ask for a CV, not "all the transcript from all the attended programs" as they ask in North America. Therefore, can I skip the information...

Hi all, I just finished my undergrad degree in CS. I did reasonably well and would like to pursue a PhD at some point in the next 6 years, however I am not ready to do so immediately. I have taken a job as a software engineer and intend to work there for a year or two to save up some money. I...

Hi all, I just graduated from my master's program in theoretical physics. I did 60% of the coursework in high energy physics and rest in condensed matter theory plus a few experimental physics courses. I did my master's thesis in what can be called as theoretical cosmology, studying particle...

I posted a lot of times on reddit, because I don't think I can survive a PhD

Hello, I am ready to apply to grad schools and would like to have a few insurance schools just in case. What are the easiest physics fields (biophysics,nuclear physics...etc) to get into a PhD for? Regards,

https://apnews.com/article/edward-o-wilson-dead-biologist-bc3d64fceb5200dd88d67187ef2a5cee

Hello, dear all. Currently I'm studying MSc in physics hoping to do PhD soon after my graduation. I did my bachelor in Quantum Electrodynamics, and before starting my MSc in physics, I was working as a research assistant in experimental HEP lab, and I thought I wanted to explore other subfields...

I have a 3.29 in the major, research experience in my last year and should be published in the spring. Good recommendations… I’m so stressed…. Kicking myself is an understatement. I just want to get into a respected school, doesn’t have to be a top tier school obviously… just something respected...

Manfred Steiner always wanted a Ph.D. in physics. He finally earned it at 89 https://www.npr.org/2021/11/07/1052005447/brown-university-89-phd-physics-dream?

Hello everybody, I am currently in the middle of my PhD in mathematics. In the beginning of the program I was quite sure that I would stay in academia, however it is becoming more and more clear to me that I want to go into industry once I am finished. During the last weeks I have started to...

Hello, I am looking at an interesting PhD. However there seem to be a few small redflags: -Previous guy in a similar position left after 2-years. I asked them why, they said he didn't like having "too many projects at the same time" or something. But didn't give me a clear explanation. I found...

For example, Terrence Tao has an endowed research position where he is able (paid to) through grants and school salary to do whatever research he wants. Tao does research in pure and applied math. This is rare of course, but I haven’t been able to find any information on this in physics...

Hello Everyone, I was looking for some expert/experienced advice on if earning a P.hD, specifically in Physics/Astrophysics is worth it. Whenever I search for the answer, I always find people mentioning the challenges of it. But no one really talks about the drawback or benefits of earning a...

I applied for a couple of PhD positions in astronomy last year but was unsuccessful. This year I hope to improve on my application and secure a position. So with that in mind, does anyone have any exemplar PhD personal statements for astronomy, or maybe physics in general?

Hello, A professor has accepted me in his group as a Ph.D. student based on an admission interview. At the end of the interview, he discussed with me how he would fund my Ph.D. He said that he has enough funding to provide me with a salary through 3 or 4 years of my Ph.D. program. He said also...

Hi, I am currently a physics teacher at secondary school level (high school). I have been offered to do a PhD in physics education in an area of research that interests me and relates to physics teaching. I am aware that physics education PhDs might not open up as many career opportunities...

Hi All, I am currently doing a PhD in condensed matter physics (experiment) and want to enter medical physics. My ideal job is more like a mix of research and clinical as I want to be able to actually help people. I wonder whether anyone has any suggestions on what I should do. I already have a...

Hi, I am planning to request some letters of recommendation for a PhD theoretical physics application. Could you please adivse on specific elements that will make the perfect letter with the best chance of getting offers. For instance is could be about my soft skills, my undergrad grades and...

Hello, I have several questions around the application process as well as the organization. 1. Are you aware of any reference website centralizing PhD offers by countries? 2.When it comes to the organization/management/ supervision of a PhD program, I wonder if there are differences by...

Okay Background First. I am an undergrad student from india. I want to pursue physics as career ( yeah i know i am being particularly vague here, due to the fact i am still in my first year and haven't really decided on my particular preference under the branch of physics). So I have a...

Hello everyone, I'm currently a physics undergraduate that just completed her second year of college. I love working physics problems and have always been passionate about going into physics research. My plan is to graduate and then go to a great/top grad school for my PhD that would allow me...

Not from the US. I have a Bachelor of Science in Physics and a Master of Engineering Science. Mid-way through my undergraduate study, I realized that I am more interested in pure math than physics and wanted to apply for a PhD in pure math after my graduation. I had done research and written a...

Is it possible for me to get a PhD in electrical engineering while going part time, one class at a time? The college I'm thinking of going to has a 8 year time limit for PhDs before credits expire. 8 years seems like a long time. This would allow for 16 different classes, not sure if summer term...

As part of a course for the Physics and Applied Physics PhD programs at KTH, I am organising a short conference where the PhD students will present their research in short popular and technical talks. The popular talks on May 27 between 9.30 and 15.45 (CEST) are open to the public (digitally of...

I think I've read nearly every post about starting towards a PhD later in life, but haven't found my particular questions answered. My questions are: - What paths are possible to move from a lower ranked school in undergrad to a higher ranked school for a grad program? - If you finish a PhD in...

Hello, I want to apply for a scholarship in a university abroad to complete my PhD studies there. One of the requirements of the scholarship is to secure a supervisor who is willing to guide me through the PhD program. A second requirement is to discuss with my prospective supervisor a PhD...

After graduating with 2-years Masters in TP, I wish to return to academia by undertaking a PhD in theoretical physics and I have A LOT of questions since I am aware that it is a, extremely competitive area especially when you were out of the game for a while, about 5 years for me… What are the...

Hi Everyone, I applied for some PhD positions in astronomy this year and was unsuccessful. I was wondering if anyone could offer up some advice for improving my applications for next year. To give you some context: I gained my Master's in Physics with Astronomy from the University of...

Hi, I don't want to be too specific here, but specific enough for relevant advice. I'm finishing a Masters in Physics and am lucky to have been made offers by 2 excellent institutes: a Max Planck Graduate Centre (MP), and at Oxford UK. Both are in experimental condensed matter; Weyl...

Hello All! I wanted to reach out for perspectives and advice on this "old-timer" wanting to do physics. At one point I was on that track, but quickly stumbled and lost my way for personal reasons. Now, I'm 35 years old and want to finally pursue a lifelong goal of a PhD in physics. My age at...

My background in CS was weak in undergrad, but I went to a decent undergrad (within the top 30 UNSWR). I got into a master's program that is ranked between 65 and 85 in CS (wide range to keep anonymous, but that general tier). I like the program because they accepted me despite my weaker...

I am considering a PhD program in Physics, and my prospective advisor is a more mature faculty member (full professor, late career). I am really interested in the field of study, and the advisor's students speak really highly of their experiences. Are there any advantages or disadvantages to...

I am currently doing my masters in theoretical physics and I would like for my phd to be something quantum gravity oriented. However it seems hard to find what's "hot" in the field those past few years and I only know the basics of these topics (though I believe this can be improved). What are...

A post doc in an area that differs from my PhD? I am currently doing a PhD in fluid mechanics but want to do mathematical physics tbh. In another thread I got an answer about a user who had done a PhD in accelerator physics and went to do a post-doc in condensed matter, vice versa even, but in...

Is it a bad idea for me to get a master's in secondary education and teach high school (math) for a few years before I do a PhD? My main goal is to teach college. However, I've missed all the PhD application deadlines this year and figured I might as well pick up the HS teaching degree as a...

Hi all, I just started in a PhD in a General Relativity related problem. Although the problems that I am going to work with are purely classical (in the sense of no QM required), I feel bad about my lack of proficiency in QFT. I had to follow a course in some advanced topics (such as String...

Hey everyone, I'm currently in my master's program in India and have been thinking about applying to states for a phd. So my problem is that I really messed up in my undergrad (2.74/4.00) but I'm doing much better in my MSc (3.2 in 1st sem, will try to reach 3.5 in total). Also, apart from that...

This is going to be controversial and might even be taken down, but I think what I will say is absolutely true, and I'm sorry if it offends people. I'm applying for the second time to condensed matter PhDs. I was in a group that did a lot of device fabrication as part of their experiments and...

Hey all I'm finishing up my master's degree in medical physics this year, specifically working in PET-MR data analysis. I have a definite professional interest in medical imaging, and am planning on pursuing this. I have an interesting choice where I've been offered a position as a PhD student...

Hello PF, I am about to defend my PhD in some area of Physics/Materials Science. I am also currently working at a company, but I want to resign after I defend my PhD thesis. I am offered a postdoc position and a salary raise if I stay in my current company but I feel I would mostly apply some...

I have seen that most PhD Math students struggle a lot with these examinations. It is fair to assume that any PhD student is already very talented and commited to the field of maths, so I am wondering whether professors (including those who write the exam) could actually ace the exam (get a...

I've started a phd in fluid dynamics. I always wanted one in general relativity or quantum field theory really, I got interviews for that (many really) but none where successful, I got into fluid dynamics straight away so after waiting around I thought I should crack on and maybe it's meant to...

Hello I am an Integrated PhD Physics student ( Masters+PhD Program ). We have two years of course work then research. I could not study very well in my classical Mechanics course ( goldstein Level ) for some reason. Also, in my EM class the Professor used Griffiths as textbook which I had...

I'm considering a PhD in Engineering and I have some logistical questions. My Background: By the time I'm done with my current program, I will have been at least a part time student every fall and spring semester for over 10.5 years. Despite the length of time, I still have the desire to learn...

Hello, TL;DR: Could it be practical to leave a PhD in Earth science in order to earn a BS in math (starting at the upper division level) if I'm tired of having a spotty math foundation and want to be able to learn anything? I've been on a slow, wandering path towards a vaguely defined "career...

I want to do my Phd on foundations of quantum mechanics, but I don't find researchers in the U.S.A that work on that. Is there a good way to search other than to go to each university and go over the PI's? Thanks