Astrophysics or Medical Physics: Which Should I Pursue?

[Gypsie]

I am a second year undergraduate currently majoring in Astrophysics, and I'm not sure whether I want to stick with Astrophysics or tend down the path towards Medical Physics.

I feel like I would enjoy a career in either. I would probably enjoy a career in Astrophysics a bit more than a career in Medical Physics. I'd say on a scale from 1 to 10 mapping the degree to which I feel I would enjoy a career in each field, Astrophysics gets a 9 and Medical Physics gets a 7.

However, I feel as though it will be far more difficult to get a career in Astrophysics started than it would for Medical Physics. There are fewer job openings, and thus more competition. What I don't want to do is go for Astrophysics and end up doing something that has nothing to do with Astrophysics, especially when I could have been doing Medical Physics.

A career in Medical Physics also pays more. It pays anywhere from $30,000 to $50,000 more a year.

I also feel that a career in Medical Physics is more stable. That is to say, there is less worry that your current job might not be your last permanent position, and less worry about having to move all the time.

So what it comes down to, I guess, is whether I feel like I would enjoy a career in Astrophysics enough more than I would enjoy a career in Medical Physics to warrant giving up the better job market, higher pay, and stability.

I really want to do Astrophysics, but I'm worried I won't end up doing anything that has to do with Astrophysics, and I'll end up missing out on an opportunity to make a lot of money doing something else I feel I'll enjoy.

Any advice?

 

[Choppy]

Hi Gypsie,

You have lots of time to make this decision, but it's certainly worth exploring your options now. As you progress through your undergrad years, you may want to try a research project in one or the other field to give you a feeling for what's really involved. Use this as an opportunity to talk to other people currently in each field.

Something else to consider is that getting into either field is not necessarily a given. They are both very competative. So one way of looking at it, might be to apply in both directions and let fate help you out with your choice.

Also, just because you decide on going one way, doesn't mean you can't go back. There is a new program at the University of Calgary, for example, in which PhDs from other areas of physics can complete the necessary medical physics course work and qualify themselves for an accredited residency (and qualify for the certification exams) without having to compete another graduate degree.

 

[twofish-quant]

I feel like I would enjoy a career in either. I would probably enjoy a career in Astrophysics a bit more than a career in Medical Physics.

One thing that you need to do as an undergraduate is to get some experience in those jobs.

Also, for undergraduate, you can do a general physics degree that will leave your options open until you get into graduate school.

What I don't want to do is go for Astrophysics and end up doing something that has nothing to do with Astrophysics, especially when I could have been doing Medical Physics.

You'll be doing astrophysics while you are doing your Ph.D. Also, a lot of things have something to do with astrophysics in non-obvious ways. The equations for radiation hydrodynamics are pretty similar to the equations for stock options.

A career in Medical Physics also pays more. It pays anywhere from $30,000 to $50,000 more a year.

On the other hand a job crunching PDE's for an investment bank pays quite well.

I really want to do Astrophysics, but I'm worried I won't end up doing anything that has to do with Astrophysics, and I'll end up missing out on an opportunity to make a lot of money doing something else I feel I'll enjoy.

Things are not set in stone, and if you have a good education, you can move to where ever your interests take you.

 

[Gypsie]

Thank you both for the advice

 

[Shiricon]

I don't know how much of a hurry you are into start a career, but have you thought of doing say a Master's in Medical Physics and a PhD in Astrophysics. That is of course assuming you are interested in pursuing a PhD in one of them.

However, the others have offered good advice. Do your research now and find out what you really want to do through undergraduate research opportunities.

 

[Gypsie]

I really would like to do astrophysics research as a career, but I'm really worried about the job market. If the job market were better, I wouldn't mind at all spending 10 years either living as a poor college student or working a relatively low-paying post-doc position, because I would know that my chances of finding a permanent job in astrophysics research afterwards would be decent. I'm really afraid that I'm going to spend 10 years living a relatively poor life getting my PhD and then working as a post-doc, only to remain living a relatively poor life after I fail to find a stable job doing astrophysics research. I don't want to spend 10 years of my life working on my education only to end up making the same amount of money I could have made if I would have gotten an engineering degree and went into the workforce out of undergrad.

Here's a question that comes to mind: would it be at all possible to get a Masters in Medical Physics, followed by a PhD in Astrophysics, and then work as a clinical medical physics, but also participate in astrophysics research? Would that be too much to handle? Would I have a difficult time finding funding for the research? How would getting a PhD after getting my Masters in Medical Physics affect my chances of finding a job in Medical Physics?

 

[Choppy]

Here's a question that comes to mind: would it be at all possible to get a Masters in Medical Physics, followed by a PhD in Astrophysics, and then work as a clinical medical physics, but also participate in astrophysics research? Would that be too much to handle? Would I have a difficult time finding funding for the research? How would getting a PhD after getting my Masters in Medical Physics affect my chances of finding a job in Medical Physics?

With respect to doing research in astrophysics as a medical physicist...

Possible? Yes.

Practical? Probably not.

Taking part in research in a different field is not impossible. A lot of the imaging physics in medical physics would easily allow you to get involved in and be in a position to contribute to observational astronomy, for example. Some medical physics positions come with an adjunct physics department appointment. Assuming you have the background and the interest it's not completely unthinkable to get involved in a collaborative project.

That being said, most medical physics positions - the professional ones that come with the nice paycheques anyway - have a strong clinical component to them. The protected time for research is not a lot. And if you want to advance professionally, you will have to do at least some medical physics research.

A lot will depend on whether you want to go home at night.

With respect to having a master's degree in medical physics and a PhD in another physics field... most people that I've seen in this position do quite well and so long at they have their certifications and are very competative for medical physics positions.

With respect to the funding question... one of the tricks to getting funding is being able to convince the committee awarding the grant that you're going to be productive with the award. Most people applying for astrophysics money, I imagine, will have spent the majority of their careers working in the field, so the fact that you work outside of the field professionally is alread a strike against you.