Career prospects
During their studies, physicists learn to solve complex problems with the help of their acquired knowledge of mathematics and a physical-logical approach. They also learn how to use laboratory equipment and the technical processing of data. As these skills play an important role in numerous professional fields, there are plethora of job options for physicists.
Physicists do not only work in research institutions and universities, but also in many other professions. These range from research-related companies and the high tech sector to banks and insurance companies. In the recent past, physics, with its many and sometimes very complex data structures, has also produced many data scientists and Industry 4.0 makers.
Career prospects
The career prospects for physicists are excellent: the German Physical Society (DPG) regularly publishes overviews of the professional fields in which physicists work as well as information on employment in its labor market articles.
The unemployment rate determined by the Federal Agency for the group "Mathematics, Statistics, Physics" was only 2.3 percent in 2021, which corresponds to basically full employment. These figures are even lower than before the pandemic. Harald Lesch, famous physics professor at LMU Munich and well-known from various TV shows and books, also knows that "there are practically no unemployed physicists". Furthermore, the number of job vacancies in which physicists can work has risen by around 30% compared to previous years, which is an initial indication of a shortage of skilled workers.
Career path seminar and job reports from graduates
The Department of Physics regularly invites physics graduates to a "careers in physics" seminar to talk about their individual career paths and to provide students with useful tips.
“During my studies, I was not only interested in physics, but also in the interdisciplinary space between physics and other natural sciences. Accordingly, during my diploma thesis in Dortmund, I examined the dynamics in the hydration shell of proteins. ”
“My research field at the University of Düsseldorf is the physics of colloids, which are finely distributed particles or droplets in a medium. These can be fat droplets in water, as in milk, or solid color particles in ink. I am particularly fascinated by phenomena such as freezing, melting and glass formation. I am also enthusiastic about teaching. In this way I can pass on what I learned at the TU Dortmund. ”
“Going to school as a teacher with a physics degree? Isn't that dreary? No two years are the same at school. It's really exciting to see how young people's potentials develop. How sixth graders get excited about physical phenomena and high school students familiarize themselves with complex issues. ”