I'm beginning my third year as an electrical engineering undergrad this fall. I've been enjoying my major so far and am doing well academically. However, recently my interests have evolved. Electrical engineering is very cool, but my curiosity is growing. This summer I actually went through my physics texts from the past two years, and I've been really enjoying it, even plodding through the mathematics and learning not just how to use the equations but to derive them myself (all those scary integral derivations are suddenly quite charming and useful), and what they really, truly mean. It's very interesting!
Here's the advice I'm looking for: I can either focus on my EE degree, take what courses I think will be most practical, graduate, and find what I hope will be an exciting career. Alternatively, I could do something along the lines of squeezing in a physics minor before I graduate, and then going on to graduate school, and hopefully getting a PhD. Then, I suppose I'd spend my time doing research as a university professor.
Any thoughts, tips, advice, wisdom, anecdotes?
p.s. I just finished Feynman's autobiography. That's what got me thinking in this way. What an incredible man.
Answers & Comments
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If you feel this way, it's probably not a good idea to stop with an undergraduate degree. If you don't go to grad school, you will quite likely end up doing grunt work for your first job. No equations or anything like that. Photocopies, measurements in a lab, maybe running simulations, or doing layout.
It's possible to get an EE undergrad degree, then switch to physics for grad school. The other way is also possible. In EE, you can stick to electromagnetics and semiconductor physics, which are the physics parts of EE. Or you can just stick with the EE degree all the way through and stay with electromagnetics or semiconductor physics.
With physics, there's theoretical and applied physics. Applied physics is closer to engineering. I don't know what people do with theoretical physics backgrounds-- in the end, unless you're Einstein, it's going to be hard finding someone to pay you to do purely theoretical work. Practical work is easier to get, where you can use your knowledge to invent things.
Congratulations ! Many students graduate and still don't understand
physics or even math. I think you have done a great job this summer, but it's quiet different to be a scientist or to be an engineer !
Scientists usually invent (or discover) theories, they derive the physical aspects from the mathematical equations. Whereas an engineer would take the physical aspect and try to find it's application or it's benefit to humankind.
It's a matter of theories & applications, do you wanna find the theories or do you wanna make use of them. Personally i 'm gonna continue to study for PhD, but i 'll try to use that science in the field of "Engineering". I hope i answered your question correctly