If you're thinking about your next career move, Physics World Careers is an annual guide that offers valuable careers advice, insightful case studies showcasing possible career options, plus a comprehensive employer directory. And jobseekers with a background in science, technology, engineering or mathematics can explore all the latest opportunities on Physics World Jobs, a recruitment website from the publishers of Physics World.
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Ask me anything: Sara Fry – ‘There are always opportunities to develop simple solutions for complex problems’
Sara Fry is the head of sustainability and of safety, health and environment at a multinational engineering solutions company
Ask me anything: Nicholas Attree – ‘With the basic toolkit of physics techniques…you can approach any new research areas’
Nicholas Attree is a postdoctoral researcher studying comets through the European Space Agency’s Rosetta and Comet Interceptor missions
Quantum careers
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Training for your future
CityU physics: undergraduate students prioritize connection and collaboration
City University of Hong Kong’s undergraduate physics programme wants to attract ambitious international students as they take their next step towards a scientific career in research or industry
Summer internships: Claire Houghton – ‘I got to see real scientific experiments, where no-one knows exactly what’s going to happen’
Laura Hiscott speaks to Claire Houghton, an early-career physicist who did summer internships at Kurt J Lesker and Adaptix
Read article: Summer internships: Marion Cromb – ‘I learnt good coding practice, and the code was actually sold to customers at the end’
Summer internships: Marion Cromb – ‘I learnt good coding practice, and the code was actually sold to customers at the end’
Laura Hiscott speaks to Marion Cromb, a physics PhD student who did an internship every summer of their undergraduate degree
Read article: Spending your summer wisely: internships special
Spending your summer wisely: internships special
Laura Hiscott speaks to some early-career physicists who did summer internships in different places, from start-ups to university departments
Read article: CityU physics: investing in ‘rising stars’ to deliver sustained research excellence
CityU physics: investing in ‘rising stars’ to deliver sustained research excellence
City University of Hong Kong is seeking the ‘brightest and best’ early-career physicists with a breadth of international research experience
Careers in medical physics
Studying physics to improve healthcare systems
Suman Shrestha, who is doing a PhD in medical physics in the US, on why he wants to return to Nepal with his new-found skills and expertise
Summer internships: Constantine Pelesis – ‘I built up my network and got an understanding of how a whole company works together’
Laura Hiscott speaks to Constantine Pelesis, an early-career physicist who did a summer internship at medical-physics company Adaptix
Video showcase: physics graduates share their stories
Physics World Careers
The 2022 edition of Physics World Careers is packed full of advice for early-career scientists. Including a range of valuable advice, informative case studies and recruiter profiles, it demonstrates the variety of jobs that use a physics degree.
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Read article: Oliver Grimston: from intern to chief of staff at bp
Oliver Grimston: from intern to chief of staff at bp
Petrophysicist Oliver Grimston talks about his career at British oil and gas company bp, from its graduate programme to his current role as the firm’s chief of staff in Ir...
Read article: Ask me anything: Taghi Amirani – a physicist turned documentary-film maker
Ask me anything: Taghi Amirani – a physicist turned documentary-film maker
From studying physics to making documentary films, with his latest being Coup 53, about the 1953 coup in Iran orchestrated by the British and American secret services
Read article: Freya Blekman: on the particle pathway of big science
Freya Blekman: on the particle pathway of big science
Experimental physicist Freya Blekman talks to Tushna Commissariat about the joy of working on big science collaborations
Read article: Using physics to fuel fibre-optic innovation
Using physics to fuel fibre-optic innovation
Engineering physicist Christine Tremblay on making fibre-optic networks cheaper, smarter and more resilient, and opening the way to send voice, data and video streams at ever-increasing bit rates
Read article: High-power lasers promise new defence strategy
High-power lasers promise new defence strategy
Physicists at QinetiQ are developing systems that combine and control high-energy laser beams to provide a powerful and cost-effective countermeasure against drones and other uncrewed objects
Read article: Opening up innovation and change
Opening up innovation and change
Roland Harwood on open innovation, how he's helped organizations from Lego to the UN to implement change, and why he believes physics is leading the way in collaboration
Read article: Using physics to patent inventions
Using physics to patent inventions
Having originally done a PhD in quantum computing, patent attorney Katherine Brown explains why a scientific background is an asset in this area
Read article: Off the beaten track: from school straight to working on the national physical standards
Off the beaten track: from school straight to working on the national physical standards
Laura Hiscott speaks to Perdi Potgieter, a research scientist at NPL who left school at 16 to do an apprenticeship
Read article: Ask me anything: Donna Strickland – ‘I wouldn’t have wanted to know that I would win a Nobel prize’
Ask me anything: Donna Strickland – ‘I wouldn’t have wanted to know that I would win a Nobel prize’
Donna Strickland shared the 2018 Nobel Prize for Physics for her work developing the technique of “chirped pulse amplification”
Read article: Time for a change: what it’s like to win a prize for work you did before switching careers
Time for a change: what it’s like to win a prize for work you did before switching careers
Akihiro Kojima and Mike Lee, winners of the 2022 Rank Prize for Optoelectronics, on developing new materials for solar cells and switching into different career areas
Read article: Ask me anything: Giulia Grancini – ‘I’m very lucky as a scientist, because my job is also my passion’
Ask me anything: Giulia Grancini – ‘I’m very lucky as a scientist, because my job is also my passion’
Giulia Grancini is a professor of chemistry and an expert in next-generation materials for photovoltaic cells at the University of Pavia
Read article: Research fellowships target clean-energy innovation
Research fellowships target clean-energy innovation
Toyota has joined forces with The Electrochemical Society to support young scientists and engineers
Read article: How to prepare for a career in the emerging quantum-technology industry
How to prepare for a career in the emerging quantum-technology industry
Laura Hiscott talks to experts who have studied the quantum-tech jobs market about what’s on offer and what skills you’ll need to forge a successful career in this area
Read article: Ask me anything: Farai Mazhandu – ‘I find it fulfilling to support and inspire others, and to make seemingly complicated subjects exciting’
Ask me anything: Farai Mazhandu – ‘I find it fulfilling to support and inspire others, and to make seemingly complicated subjects exciting’
Farai Mazhandu is chief executive and co-founder of Bayete Quantum Technologies, which seeks to use quantum tech to solve problems for people in Africa
Read article: How to prepare for the post-pandemic jobs market
How to prepare for the post-pandemic jobs market
Andrew Hirst and Veronica Benson look at how physics students can prepare for careers in the post-pandemic world, and how universities and employers can help them
Read article: Ask me anything: Ciara Muldoon – ‘I love being part of a project that is making such a positive difference’
Ask me anything: Ciara Muldoon – ‘I love being part of a project that is making such a positive difference’
Ciara Muldoon is an Internet entrepreneur whose latest project is a charitable search engine that helps tackle climate change and climate injustice
Read article: Green jobs for physics graduates: finance and economics
Green jobs for physics graduates: finance and economics
Laura Hiscott speaks to three physicists who are doing their bit to build a more sustainable future in the field of finance
Read article: Green jobs for physics graduates: decarbonizing energy sources
Green jobs for physics graduates: decarbonizing energy sources
Laura Hiscott speaks to three physicists who are doing their bit to build a more sustainable future in the field of energy
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- Materials | Conference 9th Flatlands Beyond Graphene Congress 28—30 September 2022 | Lanzarote Island, Spain
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