What are schooling options for someone looking to go into astrophysics?

I'm looking into a bachelor of science in physics and my doctorate in astronomy, but i was wondering if that's the best way to go.. and what colleges would offer me those degrees? i'm still in high school and looking ar all of my options so i'm pretty much open to anything.|||Pretty much every school has a physics major, and offers the classes you'd want to take in math, astronomy, and computer science. The important thing is to go to a school that gives you opportunities to do undergraduate research. So while it's tempting to apply to all the top grad schools for undergrad, some of those have so many grad students that undergrads have trouble getting chances to do research or work with professors. So consider liberal arts colleges as well; some of them have a lot of astronomers and physicists on staff. And check out your local state universities as well; it's cheaper and many of them are excellent.

What is the new "frontier" of science in the realm of astronomy & astrophysics?

What I mean, is that throughout human history, mankind has observed and done research on celestial objects and how everything works.





At one time, it wasn't known that the earth was spherical. At one time we were figuring out how gravity worked. At one time we were discovering the curvature of spacetime.





We continue to learn more and more about the universe and I'm just wondering what the current mystery/mysteries about the universe we're trying to unravel.





I don't know if it's string-theory, black holes, worm holes, or what.|||Dark Matter and Dark Energy are the frontier for astrophysics right now, searching for goldilocks zone exoplanets is pretty cool, but not really a frontier, because we already know how to do it (it's just a matter of time now). String theory is mainly the concern of particle physicists, rather than astrophysicists, though there is certainly some overlap between them.|||the new "frontier" for science is any nanotechnology...


as far as the new frontier for astronomy, i would say that the research at the LHC and fermi lab are in that category along with string theory......but understanding everything about black holes will also be very interesting|||Dark Matter and Dark Energy are the latest mysteries to be solved. There is also the elusive "Theory of Everything", which could either help explain dark matter and energy, or be helped by figuring out what they are.|||Exoplanets, we're finding tons, and we're not even close to done yet. I would be surprised if we didn't find an earth like planet in a star's habitable zone by the end of the decade.

What classes are recommended for a future career in astrophysics?

Im a sophomore this year, taking Algebra 2, and Properties of Physics and Chemistry (intro course to the two classes, PPC). Next year I plan to take Chemistry, Pre-calc, and Physics. Is there really anything else I should take, or consider taking?|||That's good for high school. In college, you'll want to major in physics and take classes in math, astronomy, and computer science (you'll also need great reading, writing, and public speaking skills). Spend your college summers doing research at your school and others to make sure that research is really what you want to do for the rest of your life and to gain experience for grad school. After college, apply to grad school in physics or astrophysics (some schools combine the depts; a PhD in physics is more useful) for the PhD. That's 8-12 years of college total, and most jobs in the field require another 2-5 years of postdoc experience. Also, there aren't a ton of jobs in the field.

What are the best colleges for Astrophysics?

I plan to go to college for astrophysics, which are some of the best colleges in the country for this|||MIT !! thats where I go hahahaha

How long will it take to get an astrophysics PhD degree in Canada?

I have heard it takes 10 years in the U.S.A. The University I will most likely be going to is University of Toronto.|||A PhD is not a set length of time in the US and Canada - it will take somewhere between 8 and 12 years on average (I've seen it take as little as 3, but that was a very special case, and as many as 15, but that was just pathetic). The U of Toronto has a fantastic program, and as a result is extremely competitive to get into - the grad program, that is. To do a PhD in astrophysics, first you need a bachelors degree in physics (and take classes in astronomy, math, and computer science) and then you'd do your masters and PhD somewhere else. If you go to U of T for undergrad, you won't be going there for grad school, so if you want to do your graduate work there, go somewhere else for the bachelors.





A PhD takes as long as it takes. There's no actual length - however long it takes for you to do the masters coursework, probably do a masters thesis and then pass a qualifying exam, and then do an original publishable research project and learn everything about a very specific field of astrophysics. It takes as long as it takes.|||Canadian PhD programs in the sciences have much less coursework and formal examination steps required than in the USA. This may or may not translate into shorter times.





What was your "10-year" thing counting from? After the bachelor's degree? After a master's degree? The length of time a doctoral program takes depends on many factors, some specific to your research, some about your life, some you can control and some you can't. When you are looking for graduate schools and potential supervisors, that's an interesting thing to ask. What is the average time to completion? What is the time limit and what happens when a student exceeds it? Does the funding expire after a certain time? (It's also interesting to meet some current or former students in person and ask them directly - you might get different answers.)





I agree with Eri that it's not a good idea to count on doing all your degrees at the same university. If you start at U of T and the department seems as good as you heard, then plan on going elsewhere for your master's and then coming back if you still want to. Doing all your degrees in the same department probably saves you some time, but it makes your CV significantly weaker than one that shows that you've studied in various departments and learned from a wider variety of instructors.

What do you study in particle physics and astrophysics?

i am trying to pick a major and i was wondering what kinds of things you study if you are an astrophysicist or particle physicist. also, do black holes and gravity fall into those categories?|||Yes, you can study black holes and gravity if you go into those fields.





I would major Physics with a minor in Applied Mathematics if you want to be a Particle Physicist. Realize that there are hardly any positions in the field though, and only geniuses get them.





For Astrophysics you need to major in Physics with a minor in Astronomy. This is a more open job than Particle Physics.





In Astrophysics many people are studying Universal acceleration, dark energy, and dark matter. Black hole physics isn't very big though.





In Particle Physics many people are researching Big Bang Cosmology, Quantum Gravity, and extensions of the Standard Model of Particle Physics.





Almost all Particle Physics now is empirical now, so maybe a minor in engineering?

What undergrad universities are good for astronomy and astrophysics?

I'm a senior with:


10+ honors/AP/IB courses


3.3 GPA


2060 SAT I scores (SAT II's pending)|||http://space.about.com/od/collegesuniver鈥?/a>





I know, I'm sorry, that's a very long list. From what it looks like.. many UCs offer your majors. I'm from San Francisco and did a summer program this summer at UCB for like engineering and computer science and everything science related there seemed amazing but from the description on that site..UCSC, even though it's less prestigious, shouldn't be ruled out. It listed Ivy Leagues as well but I'm not sure with your GPA if that's an option.. unless that's an unweighted GPA..then it might depend on how great you can make your essays on your applications. Johns Hopkins might be a good choice for you and isn't as insane to get into as people like to think...


Good Luck!! =] I'm doing all my applications now too..a little scary.