Does
it matter where I go to college?
Should students who are thinking of majoring in physics choose a well-funded
research university with faculty members who have done respected research
in their fields? Or would the smaller, more personal interaction characteristic
of a liberal arts college be preferable? In the end, at graduation, will
it make any difference to employers or to graduate schools?
Departments that are more student-centered ultimately produce more students
with a bachelor's degree in physics, said
a study published last week by the Statistical Research Center of the American
Institute of Physics, College Park, MD.
"People want to know if they need to attend a large, prestigious
school to get a job in their field," said Rachel Ivie, the study's
author. "According to this report, they don't."
- Physics bachelors from large departments are more likely
to attend graduate or professional school with the intention of earning
a degree in any field than physics bachelors from smaller departments.
- Graduates of large departments rate their physics and math preparation
for a career more highly than graduates of smaller departments. Graduates
from departments that offer only bachelors degrees in physics rate
their career communication and teamwork preparation more highly than graduates
of departments that offer PhDs in physics.
- Many very important outcomes -- including salary, working in a science
or technology job, length of time spent looking for work, or how
many offers they have -- are not affected by size and type of department.
- Physics bachelors are more satisfied with the department climate when
they graduate from departments that do not offer graduate degrees
in physics.
In 1998-99, the center collected data from approximately 1200 people
who had received bachelor’s degrees in physics between 1991-93.
Overall physics bachelors production declined during the 1990s.
"[The report] is about the effects of the type of college that
you attend," said Ivie. "I think the process that people go
through when deciding which college to attend probably doesn't change
much" from the way students decided on colleges when the study was
done.
The main difference choice of college makes is in how physics bachelors
evaluate their undergraduate experiences. Students from larger departments
feel their physics and math preparation was better, while those from
departments that do not grant graduate degrees feel their collaboration
and communication skills were better served.
More information
Rachel Ivie, Statistical Research
Center
American Institute of Physics
301-209-3081 Kim Nies,
Statistical Research Center
American Institute of Physics
301-209-3071
Martha J. Heil , American Institute of Physics
301-209-3088
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