Why Physics?
As I’m sure every parent will tell you, all children go through a stage of asking ‘But why?’ incessantly; and I was no different. Eventually instead of ‘Because it just is’ or ‘I don’t know’ my parents instead directed me towards books and the internet to find out for myself. Being a kid obsessed with all things space (not helped by the existence of Star Wars and sci-fi as a whole) led me to ask questions like ‘But why is that star blue when the sun is yellow?’ and so I read about stars and planets and eventually these weird things we call black holes.
Skipping forward through a decade of Newton’s laws and circuits, I was looking at university programmes and deciding if I wanted to go and, if so, what I wanted to study. I looked into physics degrees and saw that I would finally get to study black holes (as well as the weirdness I’d found out about in quantum mechanics), and not V=IR for what felt like the millionth time. From then on, my heart was set on physics, and I’ve not looked back. For completeness, I do still incessantly ask, ‘But why?’; however, to the relief of my friends and family, I’ve learned to do it in my head!
Why Durham?
I chose to study physics at Durham because of the versatility it offers; the course at Durham equips you with an incredibly strong foundation of skills in physics that will serve you incredibly well in further research or if you decide to go into industry or even further afield. The department also has world-leading research across all areas of physics, from the very smallest scales in particle physics to the largest scales in cosmology.
Studying at Durham has given me the opportunity to complete two funded research internships within the department, where I’ve strengthened the skills I’ve learned through my degree and applied them to research.
One of the biggest appeals of Durham for me, other than the course, was the collegiate system, which has given me a completely unique university experience. Having college-level societies and university-wide societies is amazing, as it caters to absolutely everyone; whether you’re a complete beginner or want to compete seriously in a sport, there is provision for absolutely everyone!
Finally, outside of just the university, I think Durham is one of the prettiest cities in the country, with so much greenery: if you want a peaceful walk, it’s on your doorstep. The buildings within the city itself are beautiful, as I’m sure you’re aware; one of the colleges is in Durham Castle- and I’ll be able to leave university saying that I’ve performed a gig in a castle!
On the flipside, if you want to get out of Durham, Newcastle is only a 15-minute train away if you’re looking for a busy city experience, or if you want to go to the beach, you can get to Seaham from the bus station in about an hour!
How is studying Physics at university different to school?
I think the most striking difference between studying physics at school compared to university is in the way you’re encouraged to approach what you’re taught. As you’ll be aware by now, ‘Because it just is’ was never satisfying to me, but I felt at school I wouldn’t have understood the answers to ‘why?’. However, at university you’re very much encouraged to really get to grasp and understand the why!
Through the problem classes, self-study problems and past papers you’ve got so many opportunities to approach and practice what you’ve learned every which way until you feel like you’ve really got it. Through this teaching style, I find that I don’t actively sit down and memorise a list of equations, but by turning every problem inside and out, I’ll naturally remember things, and if it doesn’t come out of my memory, I’m well equipped to figure it out with what I do know!
Why I love studying Physics
One of the reasons I love studying physics is the opportunity to learn how the universe works from the smallest scales of how a nucleus holds together to how a combustion engine works, right up to the largest scale of how structure in the universe emerges!
I also really enjoy how many different skills studying physics has tested, I’ve learned; the mathematical skills necessary to ‘talk the language’ that seems to best describe the universe; the coding skills to run simulations and make predictions about the outcome of experiments (having hardly written a line of code before university); the problem solving and foundational thinking skills whether that be in research or in set problems; and the ability to communicate the importance and meaning of what you’ve found to other scientists or to people without a scientific background!
I believe one of the things that makes a physics unique is that it teaches such a breadth of skills which will be useful wherever you go in life and how many opportunities it leaves open, I know of fellow Durham physics students from the past few years who have now gone into a huge breadth of fields such as; medical research, finance, oceanography, law, engineering, and a former Durham Physics graduate is now an astronaut for the ESA!!!
I think the best thing about studying physics at Durham is that it really does leave so many doors open and equips you so well no matter what you decide to do!
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