Medical Physics at uni... is it worth it?

Iam looking into various types of courses since Im in year 12 and need to decide in year13. Wondering what the salary for medical physics is and how it is at uni for any one who does it?

Thanks

Reply 1

RWills

Original post by nazgul60

Iam looking into various types of courses since Im in year 12 and need to decide in year13. Wondering what the salary for medical physics is and how it is at uni for any one who does it?

Thanks

I am going to be studying a MSci at UCL in september. With regards to salary from what i've read/ seen/ heard there is a huge variation on how much you can earn.

If you decide to go into the private sector and work for a company (something like Philips or Fujitsu) then you can start on anything like £20k with an experienced senior researcher/ head of department being able to earn £50- £150k

Clinically you can expect lower salaries with maximums being around about £40-£60k, again you would have to be in a very senior position. (can vary/ fluctuate)

Or you can do what I am planning to do and get your degree but go into the financial sector where salaries are virtually limitless. (Eventually hope to go and study postgrad and then look into research/ lecturing, however, I couldn't rely on this for a living, would stress me out too much)

Really the salary question is way too broad to answer sensibly and always remember, just because you study a degree doesn't mean you have to go into that career, most med phys courses teach exactly the same content for the first 2 years so you still have the numerical skills and hence career options of a pure physics grad.

Reply 2

nazgul60

Thanks, but also wanted to know how the course is at uni a and if there are various types of jobs you can get if any? Also is biomedical a similar course?

(edited 13 years ago)

Reply 3

Mbob

Original post by nazgul60

Iam looking into various types of courses since Im in year 12 and need to decide in year13. Wondering what the salary for medical physics is and how it is at uni for any one who does it?

Thanks

As far as I am aware there aren't any true medical physics undergraduate degrees, only physics undergraduate degrees which have a few medical physics modules (often called Physics with Medical Physics).

These medical physics undergraduate degrees are definitely not a specific entry requirement to careers in medical physics. Most people come in via a straight undergraduate physics or engineering degree followed by a masters in medical physics. Some people come in after these degree though, and its certainly no disadvantage.

Careers in medical physics come in three flavours:
Academic Research
Hospital Physics (see. www.ipem.ac.uk for lots of information)
Industry

See this post for more info (or use google!):
http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showpost.php?p=28813231&postcount=1108

Hospital physics specifically requires a masters in medical physics regardless of whether your have done any medical physics, and this is a good basis for a research career as well (although you can enter with other masters degrees). Industry is more variable.

Medical Physics at uni... is it worth it?

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