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Physics Department Undergraduate Newsletter : Spring Break 2008 Issue
posted March 11, 2008 : (last updated on May 9, 2008)
( items added since the original posting are marked in red )
(Contact the Director of Undergraduate Studies, G. Chottiner at gsc2@case.edu , for more information about any of these postings or to submit additional items.)
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(posted April 30, 2008)
Congratulations to the following award-winning physics majors:
Amit Misra & Zachary Tobin -B.S. Chandrasekhar Prize for a physics major who has demonstrated superior performance after finishing the junior year.
Kevin Vick - Outstanding Sophomore Award of the Case School of Engineering
Zachary Tobin - Outstanding Junior Award of the Case School of Engineering
Gareth Kafka, Benjamin McCabe, & Michelle Wilson - Phi Beta Kapp prize
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(posted April 21, 2008 - fromn today's Case Daily)
Rapid City Journal, April 24, 2008
Physicists have started discussions about possible experiments for a Black Hills underground science laboratory. The Large Underground Xenon detector experiment -- or LUX -- is a collaboration between Tom Shutt of Case Western Reserve University and researchers at Brown University and the University of California-Davis.
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(posted April 21, 2008)
Two graduating physics majors have earned prestigous national awards.
Karen Vaughn won a National Science Foundation Fellowship & a National Defense Science and Engineering Fellowship. She needs to choose one of these to support her graduate studies in Electrical Engineering at UC-Berkeley. Rumor has it that she will accept the NSF award.
Michael Davidson has won a Fulbright Scholarship and will spend the next year in China working on alternative energy.
Two of last year's graduating seniors also won NSF Fellowships. Amy Orsborn is using hers in a joint UC-Berkeley & Univ. San Francisco bioengineering program. Kristin Poinar is studying earth and space sciences at the University of Washington.
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(posted April 14, 2008)
From the April 14 issue of Case Daily
A team of researchers from Case Western Reserve University has found that gravitational radiation—widely expected to provide "smoking gun" proof for a theory of the early universe known as "inflation"—can be produced by another mechanism.
According to physics scholars, inflation theory proposes that the universe underwent a period of exponential expansion right after the big bang. A key prediction of inflation theory is the presence of a particular spectrum of "gravitational radiation"—ripples in the fabric of space-time that are notoriously difficult to detect but believed to exist nonetheless.
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(posted April 11, 2008)
A Town Hall meeting open to all physics majors is being arranged by the Physics and Astronomy Club leaders (Yvette Cendes & Jeremy Mock) and student representatives to the department's Undergraduate Curriculum Committee (Karen Vaughn & Sander Zandbergen). These annual Town Hall meetings provide a formal opportunity for any physics major to comment on changes the department is considering and initiate changes the students would like to see. The topics that may arise include:
- How math education fits into our overall curriculum: which topics should be covered in which courses?
- Requiring graduate courses for the math/phys degrees.
- New courses to track research experiences for students employed in the labs (there is a university-wide movement to do this).
- Can we simplify our degree requirements further, reducing the number of required courses and perhaps providing more options?
- What policies should we consider for group senior projects, given the large number of current juniors and sophomores, are any changes necessary?
- Can we move some courses to other semesters to make it easier for students to pursue co-op and study abroad opportunities?
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(posted April 11, 2008)
From the April 10 edition of Case Daily
Case Western Reserve University physicist Lawrence Krauss—a writer of popular science books—may have some future competition for the bestsellers' list. Recently the National Science Writers Association (NASW) chose senior physics major Yvette Cendes as one of 10 undergraduates to participate in the American Association for the Advancement of Science's (AAAS) annual meeting in Boston.
"The reason this honor was so cool is that I got a press badge. That was fun," said Cendes.
But that wasn't everything the NASW offered. She was teamed up with Time magazine contributing writer Michael Lemonick for shadowing and mentoring. Lemonick introduced her to reporters and editors of major science magazines as well as scientists -- many Cendes said she has admired for a long time. Read more.
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(posted April 11, 2008)
The teaching assignments for the 2008-2009 academic year are now set; the Schedule of Classes show who is teaching in the fall but the spring teaching assignments are also finalized. Prof. Shan will be on sabbatical for the entire year, spending most of her time at Columbia in NY City. Prof. Ruhl will be on sabbatical in the fall and Prof. Singer will be on sabbatical in the spring.
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(posted March 6, 2008)
Three physics faculty members, Bob Brown, Craig Copi and Diana Driscoll, have been nominated for the Wittke Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching.
(posted March 5, 2008)
Profs. Corbin Covault and Harsh Mathur have both been nominated for the 2008 J. Bruce Jackson, M.D., Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Mentoring. The Jackson Award is presented during Commencement to recognize a faculty or staff member who has made a profound difference in the development of an undergraduate student. Nominations are made by current undergraduates as well as alumni.
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(posted February 25, 2008)
As seen in today's Case Daily:
Case Western Reserve University physicists and others from the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search experiment announced they have regained the lead in the worldwide race to find the particles that make up dark matter. The CDMS experiment, located a half-mile underground in a Minnesota mine, again sets the world's best constraints on the properties of dark matter candidates.
Weakly Interacting Massive Particles, or WIMPs, are hypothetical particles that can be thought of as the glue that keeps all the matter in the universe together through their gravitational forces.
Researchers from the university include Daniel Akerib, professor and chair of the physics department, along with research associate professor Michael Dragowsky and doctoral students Cathy Bailey and Raul Hennings-Yeomans, whose graduate work is related to the dark matter search. Read more.
A race is on in Case Western Reserve University's physics department and around the world to be the first research group to capture signals from WIMPs (weakly interactive massive particles) -- the substance that comprises dark matter.
Experts in the field suspect whoever tracks and verifies WIMP signals first will be the leading contender for a Nobel Prize in physics. Two of the top competitors currently work just down the hall from each other in the physics department: Thomas Shutt and Daniel Akerib.
"It is exciting to have key players from the two most powerful dark matter detection searches in the world here in our department," said Lawrence M. Krauss, the Ambrose Swasey Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Case Western Reserve. "If dark matter particles are directly detected one day, it is very likely to be with one of these experiments, and we will be proud of the remarkable efforts of both groups even as we bask in the realization that either way, the Case Western Reserve physics department has taken the lead in this most important endeavor." Read more.
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(posted January 4, 2008)
Congratulations to senior physics major Yvette Cendes, who won a national competition in science writing. She has received a trip to the February meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, in Boston. you can see her winning article, on the topic of dark matter, among the postings at http://www.jyi.org/staff/author.php?sid=354.
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(posted January 4, 2008, updated January 14)
Three junior physics majors are studying abroad during the spring 2008 semester. Laura Boon is at the University of Auckland in New Zealand, where Yvette Cendes spent the spring of 2007. Megan Hallstrom has applied to the University of Sussex in England. Katarzyna Oldak is headed to Germany.
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(posted September 6, 2007)
Yvette Cendes is President of the Physics & Astronomy Club, PAC, this year while Jeremy Mock is Vice President . The PAC has a new mailing list at lists.case.edu under "casepac@case.edu" that people can sign up for on their own and the club hopes to have their website updated some time in the near future. Plans are underway for the PAC to run the Galileo Halloween Pumpkin Drop again this fall.
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(posted August 16, 2007 )
Physics majors now have two student representatives on the department's Undergraduate Curriculum Committee: Karen Vaughn karen.vaughn@case.edu and Sander Zandbergen sander.zandbergen@case.edu. If you would like to praise, complain about or offer suggestions for changes to our curriculum, please contact your representatives. Students are, of course, also free to discuss such issues with the department faculty, including G. Chottiner (Director of Undergraduate Studies for the department and Chair of the UGCC) and/or the chairman, D. Akerib.
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COURSE & PROGRAM ANNOUNCEMENTS
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(posted April 15, 2008)
Effective in the fall of 2008, CHEM 113, Principles of Chemistry Laboratory, is no longer required for any of our physics degree programs. It will, however, still be included in the DPR's for current CWRU students. Students have the option of following the degree program in place when they first matriculate or they can switch to any later degree program in its entirety (i.e. you can't pick and choose between different versions). I'm not aware of any other changes that might cause problems for students who decide not to take CHEM 113, but it's the students' responsibility to carefully check this out. You need to contact the Office of Undergraduate Studies to make such a change - see http://www.case.edu/provost/ugstudies/DPR.htm concerning DPR corrections.
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(posted December 10, 2007)
The schedule has been set for the spring 2008 offering of PHYS 166 - Physics Today and Tomorrow. This is a one credit class in which members of the Physics Department
faculty discuss current topics of research performed here at Case. The class
is graded on a Pass/No-Pass (based solely on attendance), and meets
Mondays from 3:00 – 3:50 PM in Rockefeller 309.
For more information, contact Prof. Lawrence Krauss, ext. 4070,lmk9@case.edu . Although PHYS 166 is designed for freshmen, all students are welcome and you may attend individual lectures without registering for the course.
January 14,
Charles Rosenblatt, The Physics Enterprise
January 21, Martin Luther King
Day
January 28, Gary Chottiner, Physics in Other Dimensions
February 4, Glenn Starkman, Physics in REALLY different Other Dimensions
February 11, Walter Lambrecht, Spintronics
February 18, Rolfe Petschek, Looking small: seeing small motions and
structures with visible light.
February 25, John Ruhl, Cosmic Lessons from Ancient Photons
March 3, Lawrence Krauss, Our Miserable Future
March 10, Spring Break
March 17, Corbin Covault, Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Rays
March 24, Tom Shutt, The Meek Shall Inherit the Earth: Dark Matter
and the Universe
March 31, Harsh Mathur, Quantum Liquids
April 7, Kathy Kash, Nature Conspires; Lessons from the History of
the Development of the Blue Laser
April 14, Xuan Gao, Exploring Physics and Technologies with
Semiconductor Nanostructures
April 21, Robert Brown, Revisiting the Noble and The Nobel MRI: A
Simple View of IT and its Rich View of US
April 28, Jie Shan, Femtosecond Spectroscopy
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(posted December 6, 2007)
The department's Undergraduate Curriculum Committee met on November 27 and decided to implement some changes in our course offerings and degree requirements.
1. PHYS 350, Methods of Mathematical Physics II, will only be offered every second academic year. It will be taught in the spring of 2008, 2010, 2012, etc. This course is a degree requirement only for Mathematics Concentration (not Mathematics and Physics) majors.
2. PHYS 365, General Relativity, will also be offered every second academic year. PHYS 365 has traditionally been a fall course but will be moved to the spring and given in 2009, 2011, etc. Mathematics Concentration majors who are not able to take PHYS 350 may substitute PHYS 365. They may, if they prefer and with their advisor's consent, instead substitute another advanced physics or mathematics course for PHYS 350. Any course substitution with require that you file a DPR correction form in order to graduate.
3. This situation may be temporary; the department is considering significant changes in our degree programs, particularly in terms of their mathematics, computational and data analysis components. Changes may also result from hiring more faculty (we should have at least one more by the summer) or if enough students express an interest in taking PHYS 350 in a year in which we do not plan to offer it.
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Students often request changes in course schedules. The instructor is free to change the schedule as long as all the students enrolled in the course (or likely to enroll) agree to the new time; this time must also fit the official university course time slots, which you can view at http://www.case.edu/provost/registrar/timegrid.pdf . Since it is generally very difficult to find a time that works for all the parties; the instructor may ask the student(s) requesting the schedule change to do much of the work of finding a mutually acceptable time.
Meetings, Conferences, Professional Societies, etc.
Watch this space for announcements of meetings relevant to Case undergraduates. Many meetings are still announced via paper. Postings for these meetings can be found on bulletin boards throughout the department. Regular meetings of the American Physical Society, including its Ohio Chapter, and other professional societies may be accessed via their web sites (listed at the end of this newsletter ).
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(posted November 30, 2007 )
The AIP Statistical Research Center has produced another set of four Physics Trends flyers. These are printable flyers intended for display. The new flyers can be downloaded from: www.aip.org/statistics/trends/phystrends.html This set of flyers depict:
The predominant work activities of recent physics bachelor's working in three large employment sectors.
The number of first-year graduate students (US and foreign citizens) enrolled in physics PhD programs from fall 1997 through fall 2006.
The number of years of graduate study it took for recent physics PhDs to earn their degrees.
The salaries of PhD physicists and related scientists 10 to 14 years after earning their degrees.
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(posted September 18, 2007 )
The latest edition of the annual Enrollments and Degrees report is now available. This report contains in-depth analysis and long-term trends of physics and astronomy students in the US. Highlights include:
Gains continue in the number of physics bachelor’s degrees conferred, up 40% in six years.
US citizens continue to comprise the vast majority (~93%) of physics bachelor’s.
Physics PhD production has also increased, gaining 14% in a single year. The proportion of non-US citizens among the new PhDs has reached an all-time high of 60%.
Recent trends in first-year graduate student enrollments foretell continued increases in PhD production, with US citizens returning to a majority in a few years.
This report can be found at: http://www.aip.org/statistics/catalog.html
Regards, Patrick Mulvey, Lead Research Associate, Statistical Research Center American Institute of Physics
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(posted January 10, 2007 )
See http://www.aip.org/isns/reports/2007/003.html for an AIP report concerning growth and changes in the number and types of students taking high school and college physics.
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(posted July 20, 2006 )
From: Patrick Mulvey, Statistical Research Center, American Institute of Physics
A report that you might find interesting has just posted to our web site - Physics and Astronomy Senior Report: Class of 2003
This report covers the backgrounds, experiences, and future plans of physics and astronomy majors at the point of graduation. It includes data on reasons for choosing an undergraduate institution, participation in undergraduate research, as well as the number of years required to receive their degree. It also covers student’s satisfaction with their major and their immediate and long term career goals.
The report can be found at: http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/undergradtrends.html
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Awards, Prizes, Scholarships, etc. for CWRU students
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SOURCE - The Office for Support of Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavors http://www.case.edu/provost/ugstudies/ugradresearch.htm is charged with supporting and promoting the research and creative efforts of our undergraduate students. Dr. Sheila Pedigo sheila.pedigo@case.edu is the director. SOURCE offers various awards and prizes for activities they sponsor.
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Paper postings sent by many graduate programs are displayed at the south end of the third floor hallway of Rockefeller. Electronic postings are now distributed through a dedicated email list-server. Instructions for accessing this listserver are posted at http://mamma-mia.phys.cwru.edu/mailman/listinfo/case-physics-grad-school . If you register for this mailing list, it would be best if you do so using an email address that identifies you as a CWRU student; otherwise you may find yourself booted off the list.
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(posted January 3, 2007) From AIP
The Statistical Research Center is occasionally asked about how well
physics majors do on the Medical Colleges Admissions Test (MCAT).
Although comparatively few physics majors take the MCAT's, they do very
well as a group. If any of your students are interested in pursuing a
medical career, they should visit the website of the American
Association of Medical Colleges to learn more about the undergraduate
coursework that is recommended.
To access the data on MCAT scores for physics and other college majors, see: http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/reports/mcat2003.pdf
Roman Czujko;
Director, Statistical Research Center ;
American Institute of Physics ;
One Physics Ellipse
College Park, MD 20740-3843
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(received August 14, 2006)
The Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) has released the findings of its latest survey of international graduate students. The number of foreign students who were accepted into graduate programs in the US for the start of academic year 2006-07 increased dramatically compared to one year ago.
The sharpest increases were for students from China and India. Engineering and physical sciences were among the fields that showed the largest increases in the number of international students who were accepted into graduate programs. You can read or download the report on the CGS web site at: http://www.cgsnet.org/Default.aspx?tabid=240&newsid440=26&mid=440&&
Respectfully,
Roman Czujko,
Director, Statistical Research Center,
American Institute of Physics
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(received April 11, 2006)
Graduate Student Report: First-Year Physics and Astronomy Students, 2003-2004
This report describes enrollment trends, characteristics, subfields of specialization, types of support, and career goals for first-year physics and astronomy graduate students.
This report can be found at: http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/gradtrends.html
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(received November 6, 2001)
AIP's Physics Resources Center has launched a new website called GradschoolShopper.com. This site features a directory of graduate programs in physics and related fields plus useful resources for students and faculty. Visit http://www.GradschoolShopper.com .
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The following message sent to the department may be of interest to students considering graduate school.
Subject: National Doctoral Survey results
We are pleased to announce that the results of the 2000 National Doctoral Program Survey are now available online at http://survey.nagps.org/ Thanks to the support of over 200 graduate institutions, doctoral programs, graduate student associations, and professional societies, the survey was a tremendous success -- altogether over 32,000 doctoral students and recent Ph.D.'s assessed their program's educational practices. The survey, funded by a grant to NAGPS from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, was designed to assess student perceptions of the educational effectiveness of their doctoral programs based on the adoption of widely accepted best practices in doctoral education, as recommended by the Association of American Universities, National Research Council, and others.
Results are available at the level of individual doctoral programs, allowing program chairs, graduate deans, and student leaders to use the responses to inform local discussions of graduate education. Results for U.S. programs from which we received 10 or more responses are publicly available on the Web. Results for programs from which we received between 5 and 9 responses are available with a password to survey participants from the program, the program's chair, and administrators within the institution.
In addition to the results, there is a discussion forum set up for each program. We hope that these forums will help encourage further discussion on each program's educational practices. We invite you to review the results for your program and to share your thoughts on the discussion boards. When posting your comments, we invite you to share your thoughts on the successful and effective practices that your program has implemented.
The survey web site also provides discipline-level results as well as the opportunity to rank doctoral programs within a field based upon their implementations of recommended educational practices.
Jobs - School Year, Summer & 'Permanent'
Students looking for either summer or school-year jobs in the physics department should send a SHORT paragraph describing interests and experience. Be certain to mention if you are in the work/study program. You can email this information to gary.chottiner@case.edu . As Director of Undergraduate Studies, I maintain a database of students interested in jobs and forward this information to faculty and staff who contact me looking for student help. I keep submissions for about one year.
Many faculty do NOT contact me when they have open positions; rather they fill them with students who have contacted those faculty members directly. Students should feel free to approach faculty and staff with whom they'd like to work - in fact, this is how most jobs are filled. A personal contact, i.e. a knock on the door, is probably better than an email. You should however, follow up with an email that reviews your interests and experience.
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Many job postings now arrive electronically. To expedite the distribution of these messages to interested students, the department has set up an email list-server for information concerning academic year, summer and permanent jobs. Instructions for accessing this mail-server are posted at: http://mamma-mia.phys.cwru.edu/mailman/listinfo/case-physics-job . If you register for this mailing list, it would be best if you do so using an email address that identifies you as a CWRU student; otherwise you may find yourself booted off the list.
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The Case Career Center, http://studentaffairs.case.edu/careers/student/ , offers a variety of forms of assistance to students searching for career opportunities.
eCompass is the Case Career Center ’s online career management system. It enables users to search and apply for jobs and internships, schedule on-campus interviews, and post resumes for employer review. eCompass acts as a launch pad for connecting with alumni and researching companies and industries. A monthly calendar of Career Center events and deadlines is also included.
ClevelandIntern.net is a database of local internships and jobs. Students and recent graduates can register for free and gain access to the large searchable database. Students also have the option to upload resumes for applications.
(i) Cleveland houses a network of college students and local professionals. Their mission is to ensure a talent-rich region that helps achieve economic growth by providing the best and brightest undergraduates with access and connections to area employers.
Career Center's Resources for Gaining Experience
Vault Online Career Library Features insider company information and personal accounts, career profiles, company profiles, industry profiles, and more. Guidebooks that describe top employers (by industry), interviewing and resume advice, and career and industry exploration, can be downloaded for free. All students have 24-hour access and downloading capabilities for this award-winning information database
What Can I Do With a Major in…? Search by major, and find information on typical employers and strategies to start careers centered on the area of study. It includes links to related professional associations and Case’s department homepages.
Career Connection – This program allows sophomores to connect with and learn from alumni in their chosen field in a shadowing experience during spring break. The objectives of the program are: to help students explore career fields of interest, to offer an opportunity for professional development, networking, and exchange of ideas with alumni and to give students insight and a perspective on the world of work.
Occupational Outlook Handbook – Provides current job market information searchable by industry and occupation. It includes in-depth descriptions that feature sections on working conditions, responsibilities, earnings, necessary education/training, and job outlook. The section for physicists can be found at http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos052.htm but remember that an undergraduate degree in physics will give you entree to a LOT of other types of jobs and post-graduate study opportunities.
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Check out the American Institute of Physics Career site for general job search assistance and for specific openings http://www.aip.org/careersvc/ .
The AIP also collects and distributes statistical information about the profession. This reports which you can view at http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/emptrends.html describe the initial employment and educational paths pursued by physics and astronomy degree recipients at the bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD levels. The report includes starting salaries, primary work activities, ratings of professional challenge and other aspects of initial employment. The report also describes the fields of study and types of support for physics degree recipients who continued their education.
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Among the reports at the above URL is Who's Hiring Physics Bachelors? The AIP has a posting that lists many of the companies that have recently hired new physics bachelors in each state. The lists can be found at: http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/states/state.htm
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(posted May 9, 2007)
The Ohio-Region Section of the American Physical Society (APS) offers a new, free service: the job bulletin board at http://units.aps.org/units/osaps/jobs.cfm . This webpage serves as a forum for advertising temporary and part-time positions in physics teaching. Any OSAPS member can post a "wanted" ad for free. At this job bulletin board, typical job postings are e.g. for teaching one or two lab sections, teaching as a substitute for one quarter while a faculty member is on research leave etc. Applicants interested in these jobs might be graduate students or recent graduates, retired faculty, or post-docs looking to gain some teaching experience. The Ohio-Region Section will advertise the job bulletin board widely, and hopes to provide a useful service in particular for smaller schools and campuses.
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If you would like to apply for a GRADING JOB, contact gary.chottiner@case.edu . Include in your message your preferences for courses (or instructors). Also, please provide any possibly useful background information such as grading experience and your own course grades in your introductory mechanics, E&M and/or Modern Physics course. Fall 2007 positions are largely filled but your request will be kept on file for the future semesters. When a job opens, it's generally first offered to those qualified students who applied first.
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(posted january 7, 2008)
Dr. Driscoll is looking for a reliable student to work in the intro labs. The training would have to take place on the job. The job requires a student with good computer skills and somebody who likes to fix things. Scheduling of time itself is flexible, but showing up on time and keeping regular hours is necessary. Reply directly to diana.driscoll@case.edu .
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Many institutions still send paper postings; these are displayed on the bulletin board outside ROC 314. Note that many program deadlines are in February.
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There are many summer jobs available to physics majors through NSF- REU ( National Science Foundation - Research Experience for Undergraduates ) and other programs at various university and national laboratories. You can access the REU web site http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=5517&from=fund .
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The Department of Energy web site http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/scied/erulf/about.html contains information about summer internships at DOE labs. Many of these present excellent opportunities to participate in exciting research at world-leading institutions.
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For information about the summer REU program at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, visit the web site http://www.lerner.ccf.org/bme/education/reu/ or http://www.lerner.ccf.org/education/undergrad/
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(posted Dec. 22, 2003)
SPS Members and Advisors: For a broad list of summer science opportunities check out the new physics student website---The Nucleus---at http://www.compadre.org/student ; It has: 1) summer job listings, 2) a student lounge for chatting, humor, etc., 3) on-line physics polls and results of polls, 4) reviews of texts, 5) Einstein exhibits and more. It's personalizable and you get to contribute, if you like.
About the summer jobs - there are listings for summer jobs ranging from particle physics in Switzerland to education policy in DC to biomechanics in Malibu to astronomy in Hawaii. Just put in your favorite physics key word and search to see what listings are related to your keyword. If you don't put in a keyword then all the summer opportunities will be listed.
The Nucleus is part of the national physics digital library, ComPADRE (Communities for Physics and Astronomy Digital Resources in Education). ComPADRE's vision is to create a network of collections that provides learning resources and interactive learning environments.
Gary White ; Director, Sigma Pi Sigma and Society of Physics Students Assistant Director of Education American Institute of Physics One Physics Ellipse College Park, MD 20740; 301-209-3007 ; FAX: 301-209-0839
GENERAL INFORMATION
The American Physical Society has various programs dedicated to educating students about careers in physics. You can learn more by visiting their web site at: http://www.aps.org/careers/
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(posted March 12, 2007) From AIP
A report and a web resource that you might find interesting have recently been posted to our web site.
Initial Employment Report: Physics and Astronomy Degree Recipients of 2003 & 2004
This report describes the initial employment and educational paths pursued by physics and astronomy degree recipients at the bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD levels. It includes starting salaries, sectors and fields of employment, ratings of professional challenge and other aspects of their initial employment. The report also describes the fields of study and types of academic support received by the degree recipients who continue their education.
Highlights include: The percentage of new physics PhDs taking postdocs continued to rise for the fourth consecutive year, with 66% of the class of 2004 taking one. Over half of the employed physics bachelors accepted positions in the private sector, with two-thirds working in a field related to science, technology, engineering or math.
"Who's Hiring Physics Bachelors?"
The majority of new physics bachelors entering the workforce take jobs in science and engineering fields (see report above). The employers that hire these individuals span a broad spectrum, from Lockheed Martin and Google to the US House of Representatives.
We have recently updated a web resource that lists, by state, the names of many companies that have recently hired new physics bachelors. The lists may be useful to job seekers in identifying the variety of companies that hire physics bachelors and to physics departments wishing to strengthen contacts with local employers.
Both the report and the employer listing can be found at:
http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/emptrends.html
Regards,
Patrick Mulvey ;
Statistical Research Center ;
American Institute of Physics
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(posted October 1, 2005 )
Every year Teach for America contacts the physics department to encourage applicants for their program. Today's issue of the NY Times contained a very positive article about this program. The following link will take you to a copy of that article - TeachForAmerica.htm .
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(posted October 22, 2004)
Most large physics conferences include a jobs fair; here is an announcement of one associated with a January 2005 meeting of the AAPT.
APPT TO HOST JOB FAIR -
Do you need help filling a position, or finding a job? AAPT's Job Fair
can help!
The American Association of Physics Teachers will host a Job Fair to be
held in conjunction with the Winter Meeting in Albuquerque, NM Jan. 10-11. The Job Fair
is for Physicists, Astronomers, Physics/ Physical Science Educators, and College
Students/Grads. The Job Fair will not only be for educational careers, but
for all facets of physics. We want our members and visitors to have the
chance to expand their career opportunities, and YOU CAN BE A PART OF IT!
Interview ON-SITE, participate in CAREER SEMINARS, and browse through JOB LISTINGS and RESUMES!
EMPLOYERS: As an extra service to paying advertisers of AAPT's New Career Center*, all employers who post openings online between Oct. 1 and Dec. 13 will automatically have their posting displayed at the job fair. More than 1,000 meeting attendees will be able to view your ad. For a minimal charge employers can conduct interviews on-site, or participate for NO CHARGE by registering for the full meeting. Member and Nonmember employers may participate.
For more information/to submit jobs, visit: http://www.aapt.org/jobfair/ PHYSICS DEPARTMENT CHAIRS - We can help you fill those positions!
JOB SEEKERS: Submit resumes to be made available to employers, or come to the job center and interview on-site. As a benefit, ANYONE including AAPT Members & SPS Members can submit a resume is NO CHARGE. Inform your co-workers and Grads/Students that they too can participate in this service! For information on how to submit your resume electronically go tohttp://aapt.org/jobfair/ .
HELP YOUR STUDENTS LAND A JOB! - Inform all Physics Professors in your
dept. to share this with their students. Contact me if you want materials (PDF's) to print out and pass to your students! aapt-jobs@aapt.org
See you in Albuquerque *AAPT's NEW ONLINE CAREER CENTER Through an alliance with AIP, AAPT's Career Center will be available to 130,000 physics and physical science professionals. The Career Center averages 175 job postings each month and 20,000 unique visitors monthly.
The Career Center has features that include: multiple searching capabilities, resume storing, email alerts, and many more.
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(posted October 21, 2004)
On Campus Interviewing -During fall and spring semesters, the Career Center located in Sears 206 hosts employers representing a range of industries and disciplines. These employers interview for interns and full-time employees while on campus.
http://studentaffairs.case.edu/careers/student/applying/default.html
Four-Phase Career Development Action Plan - an action plan for students while they are here at Case.
http://studentaffairs.case.edu/careers/student/services/plan.html
What can I do with a major in Physics? The WCIWAMI section provides information on careers typically related to physics. http://studentaffairs.case.edu/careers/student/majors/wcidwami.html
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The American Institute of Physics - Career Services web site, the leading career site for science and engineering jobs has launched it's new web site. Last month our web site received over 1,400,000 hits and over 13,000 Unique Visitors. The new web site utilizes a tracking system to manage resume responses and store all resume agent matches, as well as search resume database, track job page views and number of applications submitted. This new high-performance system is easy to use and also includes a more powerful search engine for faster search results. To assist you in your job matches, we have collected nearly 700 resumes from some of the most talented individuals in the science and engineering industry. See www.aip.org/careersvc/
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(posted Sept. 15, 2004)
The American Institute of Physics has published a book "Landing Your First Job: A Guide for Physics Students". This book, written by Dr. John Rigden, is indispensable for all students of physics. It contains the latest up-to-date information on preparing for and conducting that all-important first job search for bachelor through Ph.D. graduating students. With today's job market, it is essential that your students have access to this great resource. To order Landing Your First Job, visit (LINK NO LONGER WORKING) or call toll free at 1-800-SPRINGER. Enter or mention promotion code LYFJ-10, Mailsource LYFJD to receive a 10% discount.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions. ; Paula Melnick ;
American Institute of Physics
Career Network ;
One Physics Ellipse ;
College Park, MD 20740 ;
Tel: 301-209-3193 ;
Fax: 301-209-0841 ;
E-mail: pmelnick@aip.org
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Visit the following web sites for more information on co-op experiences: http://www.oesp.case.edu/ugcoop/ and http://admission.case.edu/admissions/learning/coop.asp .
Fellowships & Scholarships for life after CWRU
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The CWRU Physics and Astronomy Club has a web page at: http://www.phys.cwru.edu/~pac/ .
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The physics department operates a 'robot' to handle announcements of seminars and colloquia. All physics students should sign up for this robot service. To subscribe, send email to: physbot@narya.PHYS.cwru.edu . In the subject of the message write: subscribe . Complete instructions for use of the robot may be found at http://narya.PHYS.cwru.edu/~physbot/
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If you are a physics major, you should consider joining the American Physical Society, APS. Almost all professional physicists in the US belong to the APS and to one or more of its divisions, which specialize in various areas of physics. You can visit their Web site at http://www.aps.org/ to learn more about the organization. Student membership services are discussed at http://www.aps.org/membership/student.cfm . APS student membership is normally $25 per year but is now FREE for the first year . You might also want to browse the Society of Physics Students pages http://www.aip.org/education/sps/index.html
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(posted June 1, 2006 )
The American Institute of Physics collects and circulates various types of statistics to gauge the health of the profession. You can find the latest postings at http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/phystrends.htm . The most recent listings include:
SPRING 2006: Who's hiring Physics Bachelors ; Research Experiences of Physics Undergraduates ; Astronomy Bachelor's Degrees, 1989-2004
WINTER 2006: High School Physics Enrollment Growth ; Number of Tenured or Tenure-Track Recruitments ; Courses Required for a Physics PhD
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LINKS (feel free to suggest additions)
http://www.aps.org/ - American Physical Society
http://aip.org/ - American Institute of Physics
http://www.aapt.org/ - American Association of Physics Teachers
http://www.spsnational.org/wormhole/wormhole.htm - Society of Physics students page
http://physicsweb.org/ - PhysicsWeb: physics news, jobs and resources
http://www.physicscentral.com/index.html This web site is brought to you by the APS and is meant to serve as a resource for the general public.
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/ - NASA - Glenn Research Center on the west side of Cleveland
http://www.nsf.gov/ - National Science Foundation
http://www.compadre.org/student/ - resources for physics and astronomy undergraduates
http://www.advancedphysics.org/ - forum for discussion of physics at an undergraduate level
http://www.ucsusa.org/ - Union of Concerned Scientists; from their web site ' UCS is an independent nonprofit alliance of more than 100,000 concerned citizens and scientists. We augment rigorous scientific analysis with innovative thinking and committed citizen advocacy to build a cleaner, healthier environment and a safer world.'
http://www.efbfweb.org/links.php - European Biophysics that requested this link on our newsletter.
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(posted May 9, 2008)
The following is a parting shot from the class of 2008, a description of superlative faculty they have known.
Jie Shan- professor most likely to sneak into the lab and break your experiments so you learn more from the class
Gary Chottiner- best shoe selection
John Ruhl- professor most likely to "surprise!" the class and fall over laughing
Dan Akerib- most likely to say "okay" and/or trip over furniture
Kathy Kash- professor we'd want to go back in time and party with most while she was in college
Robert Brown- best apparel (no questions asked)
Harsh Mathur- most creative computer file namer
Corbin Covault- most sexy socks and sandals combo
Tanmay Vachaspati- most likely to believe in magnetic monopole unicorns
Pete Kernan- most likely to lecture about beer brewing
Lawrence Krauss- most likely to interrupt you to answer his iPhone
Glenn Starkman- most likely to be the only person in the room to comprehend an entire CERCA talk
Craig Copi- most likely to be an Old Navy spokesperson
Charles Rosenblatt- most consistent dresser
Ken Kowalski- most likely to make a joke so dry the British would be impressed
Ken Singer- quiet and quick problem fixer
Gavin Buxton- most likely to cover up what he just wrote on the board while lecturing
Phil Taylor- most delightful accent
Rolf Petcheck- most likely to use his beard as a blackboard eraser (that would be so cool!)
Don Scheule- most likely to take your knees out in a game of baseball
Walter Lambrecht- most likely to lecture from memory because he can't read his own notes
Tom Shutt- most likely to empathize with malfunctioning equipment
Cyrus Taylor- professor we'd most like to see more in the department, dammit!
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http://bobpark.physics.umd.edu/index.html - What's New by Bob Park (Ph.D. advisor for the keeper of this newsletter) - an educated and opinionated look at science in the news.
http://www.intuitor.com/moviephysics/ - This web site is devoted to bad physics in movies.
http://www.funtrivia.com/quizzes/sci__tech/physics.html - physics trivia, with quizzes
http://www.spsnational.org/wormhole/humor.htm - humor according to physics students, including a section on how to tell if you are a physics major
http://stryder.as.utexas.edu/~pamela/pa_humor.html contains several humorous articles, such as
http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/aboutcomics.html where Ph.D stand for piled higher and deeper
www.physicscentral.com/coloringbook/ Instead of doodling during class, try printing and coloring in the drawings of famous physicists provided by Physics Central
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Rime of the Physics Student , By Yvette Cendes, a Case physics major
It's late at night, my mind is weary,
Eyes are bloodshot, vision's bleary,
I know not what I'm really thinking,
My sanity's surely winking.
Yet I stay up for I am not done,
With homework for P121.
My mind's back from temporary lull,
And contemplates a bouncing ball,
Then reason shouts out, with great diction,
"Idiot! You forgot friction!"
So I cross out all the numbers there
And hang my head in great despair.
I am at a loss and panicked too
Because I don't know what to do!
I factor out "t," I integrate,
But my mistakes do not abate.
I feel like a failure and a fool.
What's life like in the business school?
But I see through that confusing mist:
After all, I'm a physicist!
I know the movements of block and book
Using Laws from Newton and Hooke,
I know a bowling ball's energy
Based on its squared velocity.
I now see myself years down the line
Where physics glory is all mine,
The secret of dark matter I know
Having found the neutralino,
My proof is so clear and it's so bold
I win myself some Swedish gold!
But as I start my acceptance speech,
I hear a harshly ringing screech.
A startling thought to my mind does creep:
Oh my God I've fallen asleep!
It's eight in the morn, not late at one
And my damned homework's still not done!
I stare at my paper with a frown
And jot some garbled numbers down,
And before I can think any more
It's in my bag; I'm out the door,
And as I'm running I pray my best
That problem won't be on the test!
The Ballad of the Electronics Student by Yvette Cendes
Leaves are crunching on the ground
And in the sky sheep-clouds abound,
The sun tosses warmth each way
While below students bask away,
But down there you won't find me
'Cause I'm in lab for 203.
I return from my pained woe
To my circuit's LED glow,
Then I quickly give a shout
Because the lights have shorted out!
I feel pangs of fear and grief
As my partner shows disbelief.
"What happened?" I, aghast, say,
"Why did the voltage go away?"
My partner shrugs, lost like me
In this odd world of circuitry.
No doubt we're stuck in this rut
Because we missed something- but what?
No doubt in the latest lecture
There were points where, I conjecture,
While I gave poor attention
The whole crux was given mention.
So I curse and give a sigh
That this did somehow pass me by.
To my circuit I now turn
Recalling scant facts I did learn,
I place wires all around
And add more power and some ground,
More resistors I add too
Until the circuit looks brand new.
Confident, I flip the switch
And it lights up without a hitch!
Then, at no doubt devine whim,
The LEDs splutter and dim.
I howl, 'cause I can't ignore
How we're worse off now than before.
I strike the board with my fist
As there's no answer in our midst,
And I don't care what I'd hit
'Til my partner says, "look at it!"
I do, and recieve a fright
'Cause all the Leds are burning bright.
I exalt and give a cheer
Grateful to know the end is near,
And before we do much more
We're done with lab and out the door,
Hoping that, come writeup night,
We'll find that we were partway right!
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Song of the Physics Student by Yvette Cendes
I've always thought physics would be more fun
If once class let out we would be done,
Or just a few hours work, that would be fine
So's after midnight the hours were mine,
But it is late at night, well after one
And the physics homework's still not done,
So my wishes are naught, I heave a sigh
And give 250 another try.
I delete a for loop, and add an if,
But that gamble ends with a new quip.
A friend comes over to see what's the matter
But my small hope she soon does shatter:
"I have the same thing!" she exclaims, confused,
As Devil Program looks on, bemused,
"Your setup and loops are all the same
So I've no idea what's to blame."
I think I'd make a decent wager
That what you take from a physics major
Isn't about letting your knowledge grow
But learning, instead, how little you know
And learning how to land on your feet
While in the midst of crushing defeat
So I ignore the bad, write-up what's right,
Commence shutdown, and call it a night!
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After Receiving an Invitation to a Physicists' Ball:
(courtesy of Yvette Cendes, March 15, 2007 )
Volta was electrified and Archimedes was buoyant at the thought.
Ampère was worried he wasn't up on current research.
Ohm resisted the idea at first.
Boyle said he was under too much pressure.
Hertz promised that in the future he will attend with greater frequency.
Pierre and Marie Curie were radiating enthusiasm.
Born thought the probability of enjoying himself was pretty high.
Einstein thought it would be relatively easy to attend.
Heisenberg was uncertain whether he could make it.
Schrödinger had to take his cat to the vet, or did he?
Hawking said he'd try to string enough time together to make a space in his schedule.
Fermi declined because of a splitting headache.
Hooke said he'd spring into action.
Fourier wavered in his decision periodically.
Maxwell just waved at the postal carrier.
Siemens said he would be happy to gain admittance.
Babbage and Von Neuman both calculated they could be there, but Ada Lovelace got stuck in a recursion of trying to find proper clothing.
Watt thought it would be a great way to let off steam.
Galileo thought people were much too inquisitive about the whole thing.
Nobel thought the idea was dynamite, and was asked to give out prizes.
Van Allen said he would wear his new belt for the occasion.
Pauli was worried that he would be excluded and would have to split early.
Joule was the life of the party, with such energy.
After a couple of hours it got so hot in the ball room that Tesla had to turn on the AC.
Faraday, as usual, was caging drinks off of everyone.
Kelvin was there, cold and aloof as ever.
Higgs was having a field day teasing Chandrasekhar because he had reached his alcohol limit.
Teller should have followed Chandrasekhar's example, because he sure got bombed.
Hubble and his wife were charming. He wore a double breasted suit and she wore a simple red shift.
Cavendish wasn't invited, but had the balls to show up anyway.
There was one fellow running about hogging all the conversations. Everyone ignored him because he was such a Bohr.
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