Physics job description

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Often working within the NHS or manufacturing and engineering companies, a physicist works by applying the laws of physics to innovate and find solutions to problems. A person in this role should be competent at using a wide range of high-tech equipment and will normally specialise in a certain field.
Many physics jobs can be found in schools and universities across the UK as there is a shortage of science graduates. Salaries range from around £20,000 for a secondary school physics teacher to £40,000 and upwards for heads of department at universities. Those looking for the latter will need to have considerable teaching experience
People working in the field of physics will usually have a PhD in Physics and or at least an undergraduate degree. The average salary across the whole sector is around £42,200, while physics working within the oil and gas industry are generally the best paid.

Description

Physics sector has to do with the study of energy and matter. Some people working on this industry are physicists and their discoveries are very useful for new technology development. There are different areas where they can work such as space, energy, electronics, transport, medical, materials, and defence. Physicists are required to do experiments and simulations involving real life problems.

A Physicist usually performs many of the following tasks:
• Teaching in universities.
• Working in space exploration.
• Developing new medical treatments.
• Publishing news about new science developments.
• Investigating ways to generate power.

Skills

• Being flexible and creative.
• Having high attention to details.
• Having good communication abilities.
• Being able to work with a team.
• Being methodical.
• Having competent math skills.
• Having good problem solving abilities.
• Having excellent IT skills.
• Having leadership abilities.
• Having sound judgement.

Education

Most Physics job placements require graduated applicants in physics, applied physics or engineering subjects. Among entry requirements for courses are five GCSE’s (A-C) including Math, Science, and English, as a minimum. It is also recommendable to have relevant experience as laboratory technician or volunteer work. A good advantage inside this industry is to have also a postgraduate qualification for some jobs, such as PhD, MPhil, or a Master of Science.

Most employers offer training schemes to learn about lab techniques, health and safety regulations, IT software, among others. Medical Physicists jobs require a higher degree of two years in the Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine.

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