0

I am a PhD in (experimental) physics with a couple of years work experience in applied physics.

I am realising that whenever you ask a physicist "can you do this?" and the answer is "yes", this tends to mean "it is physically possible for this event to occur", meaning you are not going to break any fundamental physics laws attempting it. But when you want to estimate how to get it done, and poke at workforce, budget, and schedule needs, then the engineers are brought into the discussion.

I would like to transition to be someone who can translate a scientist dreams into feasible realities. To do that, I feel I need some quantitative training into basics of various trades of engineering, from mechanical to electrical, from thermal to software.

Has anyone here ever found themselves in a similar career position? Do you have recommendations for best practices (e.g. trainings, online courses, etc), or just experinces to share?

SuperCiocia
  • 101
  • 1
  • this site is not a brainstorming forum ... it is a question and answer site ... opinion based questions, like yours, are off topic here ... questions about engineering problems that have a very limited set of "correct" answers are welcome – jsotola Feb 13 '23 at 02:28
  • Just do it. Build something – joojaa Feb 13 '23 at 07:09
  • I have worked with two "physicists" over the years. Long before I worked with them both realized it's difficult to earn a living as a physicist so they retrained & did something else. One initially became a science teacher, then a mineral lab technician, then a geologist & a brilliant geologist at that. He's now a executive for a number of mining companies. The other became a geotechnical engineer. He was OK in such a role, but not brilliant. He didn't know whether talc was a mineral or an alteration state, when he should have. ... – Fred Feb 13 '23 at 12:44
  • ... In the US, engineering is usually a BS degree, elsewhere it's usually a BE or B Eng degree. There's more to engineering than just science. There's economics, accounting, management of people & systems, theory & practicalities, how are things assembled: screws, rivets, welding, brazing? There's also how are things made: milling, turning items on a lathe. – Fred Feb 13 '23 at 12:51
  • I agree with joojaa. Just do it. Find something cool you want to build, that's at the edge of your capabilities. Build it. You'll encounter many problems. That's fine. Overcome them. This expands your capabilities. Then repeat. I built a set of shelves. I could have bought them, but I got to choose the dimensions and learned a little bit about static loading. Or get a 3D printer and build a clock. Or an electric gate opener or curtain puller. Or RGB lighting. Whatever's fun and in the field you want to learn about. – user253751 Feb 22 '23 at 03:21
  • however, that's for DIY/hobby. If you want a career in engineering I would go ask people who run engineering courses, same as if I wanted an engineering career "from scratch". Might be able to accelerate or skip some parts of the course as you have prior knowledge. They'll know, I don't. – user253751 Feb 22 '23 at 03:22

0 Answers0