Astrophysics Undergraduate Degree

I have applied for astrophysics but was wondering what studying it is like, how computer based is it and is it worth me doing some extra work over the summer so I am ready for the degree since I don't take further maths or chemistry a-levels?

Reply 1

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

Chemistry not really necessary. You'll cover the FM material in first year if FM wasn't required for entry. Could be worth looking at the basics of matrices and complex numbers in the summer so you have some notion of what they are.

In terms of how computer based, as much as any physics degree. You'll probably do some MATLAB stuff at some point, some PC based lab related activities. Maybe some proper programming. Astrophysics at research level (i.e. PhD level and possibly at undergrad dissertation/thesis stage) is often very computationally oriented.

Reply 2

Lancaster Student Ambassador

Official Rep

Original post by brooding-overall

Hiya,

I'm a current 3rd year astrophysics and cosmology student at Lancaster University and also didnt take further maths or chemistry at A-Level! If you feel you would like to be a bit more prepared regarding unfamiliar content within your upcoming degree, I would suggest having a look at the uni's course content / module layouts and seeing what topics they cover to pick which ones you would feel a bit more preparation may help you understand it better in the future. As an example, at Lancaster during 1st year physics we cover integration, differentiation, vectors, matrices, etc. so out of those you may feel more unsure about the last two compared to the first two topics and choose to focus on them over the summer if you wish.

In terms of computer-based skills, we started coding using Python in 2nd year, however the same skills are used across most coding languages so having a go at any would still benefit you and hopefully make some content more familiar for you.

As a final note, don't feel you have to do any prep over summer for you degree as the courses are structured to cover all the basics so students that may have missed out on content during previous education levels are all able to understand new content. These are all just suggestions for you if you would like to feel a bit more comfortable / familiar with your future subject! (you made a great subject choice with astrophysics!!)

If you have any more questions, feel free to ask :smile: