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Physicist

Alternative titles for this job include

Physicists study the behaviour of matter and energy and form theories to explain how everything fits together.

Average salary (a year)

£28,000 Starter

to

£61,000 Experienced

Typical hours (a week)

37 to 40 a week

You could work

evenings / weekends / bank holidays occasionally

Meet Helen

Helen is  the Cavendish Professor of Physics at the University of Leeds.

1 minute 30 second watch

View transcript

I'm Helen Gleeson. I'm the Cavendish Professor of Physics at the University of Leeds and I'm an experimental physicist.

So my day-to-day work now is really concentrated on research.

So I've got a team of about 10 people who work with me. We're doing interesting things, trying to understand, some materials that we discovered. And these materials are really neat because when we stretch them, they get thicker rather than thinner, which is a bit unusual.

We wanted to understand how that happened. That's what experimental physics is about.

So we've got people working on mechanical properties, the optical properties. Sometimes we're doing x-ray scattering to understand structure. We try and read around theory and understand some of the theoretical basis behind what we're seeing.

You have to have a a decent understanding of physics. Personally, I like building and doing experiments. So you have to have that hands-on ability.

You have to have determination because research doesn't always work. You have to be prepared to problem solve. And that that again is is partly around the bit, what do you do when it doesn't work. But also something’s happened that I wasn't expecting like when we found this new material property, you know, how can we work out what's going on?

And that's the bit I think that really, I enjoy a lot. I enjoy the problem solving. Okay, you know, so where can we, where can we work, how can we work this out? Where can we get the information we need?

How to become

Explore the different ways to get into this role.

How to become

You can get into this job through:

  • a university course
  • an apprenticeship
  • a graduate trainee scheme

University

You can do a degree to start your career in physics. The course you choose will depend on your area of interest.

Course examples include:

  • physics
  • astrophysics
  • mathematics
  • medical physics
  • computer science
  • engineering physics

If you do not have the required entry qualifications to do a physics degree, you may be able to do a 1-year physics foundation course before moving onto a degree.

Some physics degrees combine an undergraduate course with a postgraduate master's qualification, like an MPhys or MSci. On these, you'll do more independent research, and courses can lead to further study for a PhD.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 2 or 3 A levels, or equivalent, including maths and physics
  • a degree in a relevant subject for postgraduate study

More Information

Apprenticeship

You could apply for a Degree Apprenticeship work-based training scheme. There are a lot of options available to develop your skills in physics.

Examples include:

  • Robotics Engineer Level 6
  • Nuclear Scientist Level 6
  • Space Systems Engineer Level 6
  • Scientist Level 6
  • Research Scientist Level 7

These apprenticeships take between 3 and 5 years to complete.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) and A levels, or equivalent, for a degree apprenticeship

More Information

Other Routes

You may be able to apply for a place on a graduate training scheme with a commercial company, government department or university, after completing your degree or postgraduate qualification.

More Information

Career tips

Try to get some work experience to find out more about job roles and the areas where you could apply your knowledge and skills as a physicist. Look out for:

Further information

You can find out more about careers in physics through the Institute of Physics and Planet Possibility.

What it takes

Find out what skills you’ll use in this role.

What it takes

Skills and knowledge

You'll need:

  • knowledge of physics
  • maths knowledge
  • knowledge of engineering science and technology
  • the ability to think clearly using logic and reasoning
  • to be flexible and open to change
  • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
  • the ability to use your initiative
  • persistence and determination
  • to have a thorough understanding of computer systems and applications

What you’ll do

Discover the day to day tasks you’ll do in this role.

What you'll do

Day-to-day tasks

As a physicist, you could:

  • design and conduct experiments, and supervise research
  • solve problems, make new discoveries and develop products
  • analyse data and build computer simulations, using mathematical modelling
  • develop theories to explain observations and predict natural phenomena
  • publish and present research findings

We've identified this as a potential green job

For a physicist to be a green job, you could:

  • help climate researchers to understand atmospheric and oceanic physics to predict environmental changes
  • reduce pollution with a physics based process like plasma technology to treat waste
  • gather and interpret environmental data using satellites

Find out more about green careers

Working environment

You could work at a research facility, in a laboratory or at a university.

Your working environment may be outdoors some of the time and you may spend nights away from home.

You may need to wear protective clothing.

Career path and progression

Look at progression in this role and similar opportunities.

Career path and progression

With experience, you can lead and manage the work of a research team. This could be in one of many different areas, for example:

  • education, teaching the scientists of tomorrow
  • materials science, investigating the properties of superconductors
  • energy engineering, developing alternative fuels
  • medical research, building more sensitive scanners
  • aerospace, designing instruments for satellite systems

Physicists play an important role in the economy. You can learn more about the different career options from the Institute of Physics.

Current opportunities

Find apprenticeships, courses and jobs available near you.

Current opportunities

Apprenticeships In England

V05083 - Degree Apprentice Test & Commissioning Engineering

  • Wage: £23,493 a year Annually
  • Location: 1st Floor, Main Shipyard Offices, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria

V05081 - Degree Apprentice Nuclear Engineering

  • Wage: £23,493 a year Annually
  • Location: 1st Floor, Main Shipyard Offices, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria
Find apprenticeships near you

Courses In England

Physics

  • Provider: CHRIST THE KING COLLEGE
  • Start date: Flexible
  • Location: Newport

Physics

  • Provider: ST JOSEPH'S CATHOLIC ACADEMY
  • Start date: Flexible
  • Location: Hebburn
Find courses near you

Jobs In the United Kingdom

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Skills assessment

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