How a Sigma Pi Sigma Workshop Reignited My Physics Journey

When I registered for the Sigma Pi Sigma alumni professional development workshop, I expected to network and discuss challenges revolving around the current STEM job market. What I discovered instead was a transformative space bursting with opportunities to reflect on my connection to the field and inspiring me to leap into exploring who I am as a systems engineer with a physics degree.

The workshop focused on professional development and life after a BS in physics and generated exactly the kind of honest, practical dialogue that physics graduates desperately need. It also showed us, as SPS alums, how to access helpful resources. Physics students often emerge from undergraduate programs with deep theoretical knowledge but a limited understanding of how their skills translate to diverse career paths. This workshop offered a way for us to address our experience gaps and consider the question, How can we use our skills—and physicists have many—to create financial security in any socioeconomic or political atmosphere?

In today’s economic landscape, undergraduate physics students and alums may find some uncertainty in the job market. One might pose the question, Does a physics degree equip you with the skills to progress even in a recession? I urge you to accept where you are now but to also envision where you’d like to be professionally, then work toward that goal regardless of the market. Since that is easier said than done, it is important for us alums to share our stories with current students and ignite conversations about traversing the job market.

My path after graduating was rocky. I took the first job I could secure, which was about eight months after graduating, as a high school physics teacher. Teaching was not my dream job. I cut my teeth at an all-boys school and was only a few years older than some of my students. The experience was rough but taught me the importance of vision, especially during the always-draining parent–teacher conferences, and patience. I needed the support of mentors, such as my undergraduate academic advisors, and chats with other recent physics graduates as I continued looking for the right fit.

It took me two more years to land something more closely aligned with how I saw myself—an engineer. That first engineering job came in the form of third shift at a radiopharmacy. From there I spent as much of my time learning as I could, and I eventually landed in systems engineering, where I happily am today.

We need to share the stories, even the tough ones, of how we got to where we truly want to be. We need to talk about the real job market experiences of physics graduates, among ourselves and with physics students. Job posting sites and networking conferences may not accurately provide these perspectives, and it is incredible that SPS is tackling this head-on by reaching out to alums.

There are many fields looking for the skills that physics graduates have, but it takes alums giving back to their local chapters via seminars and SPS meeting visits to provide the fresh outside perspectives necessary to keep the flame of the next generation alive. By offering both strategic career guidance and genuine personal connections, we are capable of imparting significant change.

Perhaps the most significant outcome of my workshop experience was discovering that my path is leading me toward medical physics. The intersection of physics principles and medicine has always intrigued me, and participating in the workshop crystallized how my systems engineering background could serve the world in ways I hadn’t anticipated. This realization was profound, demonstrating how exposure and community can foster meaningful and life-changing conversations.