physics degre or maths degree !!

physics degre or maths degree !!

just wanted your opinoins on this one im not sure which to do

also just wondered if anyon here has studied with the open university before and what did they think of it !!

thanks

Reply 1

Steeeeevo

15

Well the UK is desperate for scientist, especially physicists so Id say physics, but there are more career options with maths.

Reply 2

bashment

OP

Well the UK is desperate for scientist, especially physicists so Id say physics, but there are more career options with maths

yeah i know physics is supposed to be falling !! oh i thought you had the best career options with physics !!

why is maths better than physics do you reckon ??

Reply 3

material breach

12

Steeeeevo

Well the UK is desperate for scientist, especially physicists so Id say physics, but there are more career options with maths.

Why do you have more career options with maths? :confused:

That makes no sense and some evidence would help what seems to be a rather large generalisation.

Reply 4

Clueless?

I've personally gone for maths, you can do quite a lot of physics options later on in the maths courses at most universities, and the maths in physics was of the more mundane kind, so I decided not to go for that. Maybe try a physics & maths course?

I don't think you can really compare the OU to other universities, it really isn't the same kind of thing, it is however a great place to get a degree part-time, or around your current job if you have one :smile:

.

On the job prospects I'd think that whats more important isn't whether you've done maths, or physics, unless you want to head into say mathematical/physical research (or other highly specialised jobs) but to have a good degree from a good university :smile:

. Job prospects would most likely be more similar than not.

physics for me...

I'm doing a Maths and Physics MSci, best of both worlds...

Only problem is I recon it will be hard to get into a job as an actuary with that... Which is a shame, because I LIKE MONEY.

Reply 7

rottcodd

3

I think with the OU you can always swop your degree around depending on which one you find you prefer whilst studying it. I suppose if you wanted to go into teaching, doing a physics degree lets you teach either physics or maths, whereas doing a maths degree means you can only teach maths. IT depends which one you prefer and what you want to do afterwards really, both are going to have good career prospects.

Reply 8

Steeeeevo

15

bashment

yeah i know physics is supposed to be falling !! oh i thought you had the best career options with physics !!

why is maths better than physics do you reckon ??

material breach

Why do you have more career options with maths? :confused:

That makes no sense and some evidence would help what seems to be a rather large generalisation.

What I meant by that is there is allot more different directions you could go with a degree in maths such as management, business, stocks, accountancy, banking, finance…. the list is endless as a lot of different career paths need a good head for maths, so a maths degree would help you get there, but a degree in physics would only be massively helpful for a physics orientated career, of which there are many but there’s not the flexibility of different types of careers that a maths degree gives you, that’s what I meant by more career options. Also personally I don’t think maths is better degree than physics, I myself will be going into a scientific career so I’m hopeful that more people will do scientific degrees so science doesn’t become obsolete in the UK, I was just making you aware of the different options available to you in a Maths degree as oppose to a Physics degree. Sorry for the confusion.

Reply 9

emporium

Steeeeevo

What I meant by that is there is allot more different directions you could go with a degree in maths such as management, business, stocks, accountancy, banking, finance….

I would think a degree in physics would make somebody equally suitable to those careers, after all physics is all about setting up mathematical models for things, which, as I understand, is what banking & finance is all about, generally.

Reply 10

material breach

12

Steeeeevo

What I meant by that is there is allot more different directions you could go with a degree in maths such as management, business, stocks, accountancy, banking, finance…. the list is endless as a lot of different career paths need a good head for maths, so a maths degree would help you get there, but a degree in physics would only be massively helpful for a physics orientated career, of which there are many but there’s not the flexibility of different types of careers that a maths degree gives you, that’s what I meant by more career options. Also personally I don’t think maths is better degree than physics, I myself will be going into a scientific career so I’m hopeful that more people will do scientific degrees so science doesn’t become obsolete in the UK, I was just making you aware of the different options available to you in a Maths degree as oppose to a Physics degree. Sorry for the confusion.

I personally don't think that maths gives you any more options. My maths at the end of my phyiscs degree obviously won't be as in depth as a maths students however it will still be to a very high level. High enought that the difference is going to make little difference. Also physics has the expermental side to over maths which more than makes up for this difference in the range of careers you can go into.

Put simply I don't think there is any difference in the range of careers you can go into between maths and physics.

Reply 11

black_mamba

14

Physics is mainly math anyway.

I study engineering and it's about 80% maths, pure physics is probably more.

Reply 12

bashment

OP

Only problem is I recon it will be hard to get into a job as an actuary with that... Which is a shame, because I LIKE MONEY.

call me sily but whats an actuary ??

yeah im kinda thinking that maths may be a little too much math !! and phyics is a bit of both

Reply 13

Gaz031

15

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actuary

Reply 14

WELSHKNIGHT

why not do theoretical physics?

Reply 15

Comp_Genius

4

Or even, why not do Mathematics and Physics?

Reply 16

thealchemist

Physics i find it to be much more interesting

Reply 17

ssmoose

13

call me sily but whats an actuary ??

Risk managers I think. Work out the risks of expanding businesses whether it's worth insuring something. It's stereotyped as a boring career, but you do get a £60,000 starting salary!

Reply 18

MissSurfer

17

steerpike

I suppose if you wanted to go into teaching, doing a physics degree lets you teach either physics or maths, whereas doing a maths degree means you can only teach maths.

You can teach maths with a physics degree? Well that widens the options for me! (Not that I've limited more options yet - I've only just done my GCSEs but I'm thinking about what I want to do 'when I'm older' kinda thing). Thanks!

MissSurfer

PS I should really check that though before I start making career choices though huh? LOL

Reply 19

not1

15

Physics is better because you learn lots of maths anyway, and actually get to see some fruits to your labour in the explanatory power of the mathematical models. As for employability, I would say they're probably about the same, although physics grads might have more options open to them as they learn experimental skills that can be taken to engineering, electronics etc.

physics degre or maths degree !!

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