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i like the story of the college grads with terrible undergraduate grades applying for the masters program, and getting in! And then turning their life around. After they graduate with a master's degree its like all their undergraduate sins are erased.
From my experience both interviewing and hiring, a physics degree absolutely will not help you in tech. You will have more credibility than any non-STEM graduate, but employers will constantly wonder if you've bridged the gap created by your lack of a CS degree.
Which means to handle that case, you more or less have to learn to do it for them. Half of which means learning enough about the target specialization, half of which is a skill that has a lot in common with pitching a startup.
Some universities have an Engineering Physics undergraduate program, seems like a good option, of having choices to work in a lot of industries.
My education has very little relevance to my field of work. But Engineering Physics was so comprehensive, it gives you the ability to problem-solve on a whole other level. And that is much more valuable to employeers than the actual content of your degree.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
So I assume it would acceptable to pursue a degree if you enjoy physics and hope to use the knowledge and degree to advance your career. Are the job prospects for advanced degrees in physics that poor?
I would say yes. Pursue physics only because you love it. Unless you want to go into Defense the job prospects are terrible. However, learning physics teaches you how to learn anything and how to do it fast. This turns out to be an invaluable skill for programming, so physicists make great programmers. You just have to earn it on top of all the physics.
The thing is, most people that get advanced degrees in physics don't stick around in the field and don't follow the traditional path. The article is correct to point out that physics departments would do better if they accept that reality and accommodate for it explicitly. Some schools already do that with the "engineering physics" degree.
Physics is a great preparation for general purpose problem-solving, IMHO.
In my own case, I do wish that I had a smoother transition out of physics, however. Spent a lot of time in my career not knowing where I fit in. Not that it's a totally bad thing, finding "a job" was never a problem, but self-actualization is harder when you're dealing with not knowing where you belong.
I have finished my master's in November, and I have been looking for a job. I have not been very lucky so far. I am looking for data-science related stuff. If you have any suggestions, please, I am all ears. (I am in Europe)
There was a time when, if you had a degree in Physics, they'd throw money at you. That is no longer true.
I have an MS in physics and I disagree with this. If you want opened doors, go for software engineering. You have so many things you can do with software, seriously. I have finished my master's in November, and I have been looking for a job. I have not been very lucky so far. I am looking for data-science related stuff. If you have any suggestions, please, I am all ears. (I am in Europe) There was a time when, if you…
As far as Data Science goes, for the most part I see the DS folks coming from other internal roles in an organization, not hired from outside. So first get hired doing something where you come to understand the data, then segue into the role you desire. Things may be changing for what I just said, however.