Warwick vs Durham (Theoretical physics)

Hey guys,

So I'm a bit confused right now about universities and all. I wish to study Theoretical physics and my top choices are Durham and Warwick (Maths and physics). But I can not set my mind on one university; both seem amazing and have great reputations.
I guess I'd really like to hear from both Warwick and Durham students on how much they enjoy the course, the university, the surrounding area etc. In particular, I'd also like to know the balance between physics and maths in the Durham course and how much lab work is required.
In short, I just want to know as much as possible about the two courses before making a decision.

Thanks in advance for any help!

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 1

JuiceboxOvertime

OP

Bump

Reply 2

JuiceboxOvertime

OP

Bump bump

Reply 3

Unkempt_One

13

This is a slow forum, so you don't need to bump your thread. Theoretical Physics at Durham is different from 'Maths and Physics'. In the first two years, you will study the same modules as other Physics students (not including optional modules in first year). Each academic year is split up into 6 modules. In first year, the experimental module is 'Discovery Skills in Physics', where you learn the basics of lab work and the statistics of measurement. In second year, the lab module is 'Laboratory Skills and Electronics', which covers more independent lab work, electronics, and computing. It is an intensive module but only counts for one sixth of the year. In third year, the practical module is 'Physics Problem Solving', which comprises a computing project, presentation skills, and a 'general problems' exam which covers some requirement of the IoP, so no actual lab work. You can choose to do more lab work in third year, but in practice people doing 'Theoretical Physics' will choose 'Maths Workshop' instead. I chose the latter route and did no lab work in third year. In fourth year, half of your credits are dedicated to a project, which could be purely theoretical in nature. The level of Mathematics is about the same as other courses.

Reply 4

JuiceboxOvertime

OP

Original post by Unkempt_One

This is a slow forum, so you don't need to bump your thread. Theoretical Physics at Durham is different from 'Maths and Physics'. In the first two years, you will study the same modules as other Physics students (not including optional modules in first year). Each academic year is split up into 6 modules. In first year, the experimental module is 'Discovery Skills in Physics', where you learn the basics of lab work and the statistics of measurement. In second year, the lab module is 'Laboratory Skills and Electronics', which covers more independent lab work, electronics, and computing. It is an intensive module but only counts for one sixth of the year. In third year, the practical module is 'Physics Problem Solving', which comprises a computing project, presentation skills, and a 'general problems' exam which covers some requirement of the IoP, so no actual lab work. You can choose to do more lab work in third year, but in practice people doing 'Theoretical Physics' will choose 'Maths Workshop' instead. I chose the latter route and did no lab work in third year. In fourth year, half of your credits are dedicated to a project, which could be purely theoretical in nature. The level of Mathematics is about the same as other courses.

Thanks for the reply!
Do you personally think that a Theoretical physics degree would be better than a Maths and Physics degree for someone who wishes to pursue theoretical physics as a career?
Also, how was your time at Durham in terms of social life and academic experience?

Posted from TSR Mobile

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 5

username853993

21

Original post by JuiceboxOvertime

Thanks for the reply!
Do you personally think that a Theoretical physics degree would be better than a Maths and Physics degree for someone who wishes to pursue theoretical physics as a career?
Also, how was your time at Durham in terms of social life and academic experience?

Posted from TSR Mobile

For the theoretical physics bit, it won't really matter as you'll be doing lots of maths either way, just different stuff maths wise and the approach will be different for the maths side of the courses.

Not sure how it works at the unis you are considering ,but try and keep labs and programming for as long as you can because this is where your skills that will make you employable will come from, as as much as it is a good thing to aim for your dreams there is a 99.9% chance you wont make a long lasting career out of theoretical physics research as permanent positions are extremely scarce and extremely competitive too.

Reply 6

Unkempt_One

13

Original post by JuiceboxOvertime

Thanks for the reply!
Do you personally think that a Theoretical physics degree would be better than a Maths and Physics degree for someone who wishes to pursue theoretical physics as a career?
Also, how was your time at Durham in terms of social life and academic experience?

Posted from TSR Mobile

I think either a Maths degree OR a Theoretical Physics degree is best. Maths degrees will be more suited for very nearly completely speculative stuff like string theory, or anything that really requires a deep understanding of Maths. Theoretical Physics would help you to think like a 'physicist' which could potentially open up a wider range of areas; most fields of research need theorists. With Maths and Physics, I suspect there's a bit too much overlap in the content to be as useful as either of the above, BUT it might give you the ability to tackle mathematical physics without having to muck about with irrelevant abstract mathematics.

I also agree with MadMadMax to an extent. Try to keep up with computing throughout your degree. I think that's where a lot of the future employment for physics graduates will lie. One caveat, don't just make programs to solve physics problems, pursue it in your own time and try to learn development. I don't think labs are as important skills-wise, but they give you stuff to talk about during interviews which can be just as valuable.

Reply 7

LibertyMan

16

I'll give you a free bump because I'm interested in this thread as well.

I'm a year 13 but what I do know is Warwick have a lot of industry links and have a reputation for making you employable. ( aka Warwick Ltd)

I have no clue about other factors.

Reply 8

amelia_jw

I had offers last year for Maths and Physics at Warwick and for Theoretical Physics at Durham because I, like you, wanted to end up in a theoretical physics career. I decided that I preferred the course at Warwick, I thought it was more suitable because it was very maths intensive and had no labs (which I found very appealing!) but I ended up choosing Durham because I liked the university itself more and the collegiate system. I'm on a gap year instead, however, so I can't elaborate much further. Good luck!

Edit: It's worth mentioning that the course at Warwick (so I was told at the post-offer day) is fairly flexible, so after the first year you can switch to straight physics or, if you do well enough, maths.

(edited 8 years ago)

Warwick vs Durham (Theoretical physics)

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