Physics has had a profound effect on technology, engineering, and medicine. The student who elects to study physics will deal with science history, advanced mathematics, computing issues, and instrumentation. Thus, while physics is intellectually very rewarding and broad-based, it is also very challenging. The typical entering physics major should enjoy mathematics and problem solving. Good preparation for the physics major includes chemistry and physics at the high school level, as well as mathematics up to and including trigonometry and analytic geometry.
Physics forms the basis for a wide variety of career options.
Below are listed some of the options chosen by physics majors over the course of the last decade. The whole of science is nothing more than a refinement of everyday thinking. This is one of the traditional options for a physics major. This may involve research in a governmental, industrial, or university laboratory. The research could be dealing with materials, computation, or medicine.