- #1
RahSuh
- 10
- 4
Hi
Strange question but here goes
I am thinking of doing the Open University degree in Physics or Maths/Physics and wondered if anyone had done it and had any thoughts
By way of background I actually did physics undergrad degree over 25 years ago (gosh!) here in the UK. But like a lot of people, I got bored with physics and then went into finance here in the UK. And totally forgot about physics. However, in the last few years, I have got very interested in it again.
In fact have been steadily working my way through Prof Susskinds Theoretical Min series - which are refreshing, unique and perfectly aimed at me (ie someone with rusty physics but someone who knows what what differential eqns are etc.)
I hadn't thought about physics for 25 years but it came back to me after a few hours/weeks of studying. It is startling how much of ones knowledge just sits there in one's mental hard drive - ready to be taken out and reused. You forget the details, but the principles are still there. In fact, I know understand the bits of physics I have studied now better than when I was a (lazy!) under- grad
Even though there are lots of physics resources out there - they are unstructured for an interested amateur like me. Some are too complicated, some are too easy and some don't have a logical structure that a university degree offers (ie at uni - they teach you the easy stuff first, then the not so easy stuff, making sure you study in logical order)
So for me - the degree would purely be a hobby ( I am not going to quit work/ have no intention of doing PhD/ or of being a fulltime physicist) It is purely to keep my mind active and sharp.
What I wanted to know:
- Is the course well structured
- Is the material interesting
- Teaching methods actually update / fresh
- The time commitment involved?
Appreciate any thoughts
Strange question but here goes
I am thinking of doing the Open University degree in Physics or Maths/Physics and wondered if anyone had done it and had any thoughts
By way of background I actually did physics undergrad degree over 25 years ago (gosh!) here in the UK. But like a lot of people, I got bored with physics and then went into finance here in the UK. And totally forgot about physics. However, in the last few years, I have got very interested in it again.
In fact have been steadily working my way through Prof Susskinds Theoretical Min series - which are refreshing, unique and perfectly aimed at me (ie someone with rusty physics but someone who knows what what differential eqns are etc.)
I hadn't thought about physics for 25 years but it came back to me after a few hours/weeks of studying. It is startling how much of ones knowledge just sits there in one's mental hard drive - ready to be taken out and reused. You forget the details, but the principles are still there. In fact, I know understand the bits of physics I have studied now better than when I was a (lazy!) under- grad
Even though there are lots of physics resources out there - they are unstructured for an interested amateur like me. Some are too complicated, some are too easy and some don't have a logical structure that a university degree offers (ie at uni - they teach you the easy stuff first, then the not so easy stuff, making sure you study in logical order)
So for me - the degree would purely be a hobby ( I am not going to quit work/ have no intention of doing PhD/ or of being a fulltime physicist) It is purely to keep my mind active and sharp.
What I wanted to know:
- Is the course well structured
- Is the material interesting
- Teaching methods actually update / fresh
- The time commitment involved?
Appreciate any thoughts