Physics Graduate Careers
A number of people have asked me about what sort of career path physics graduates take after graduation. So I thought I would compiled a list of the main companies which employ physics graduates from a variety of sources on the web.
Thanks go to the University of Kent careers service for their page which provided the foundation to this page: What can you do with a degree in physics?
If you have any suggestions for this page then please email me.
Medical Physics
- National Scheme for Training Clinical Scientists within the NHS - www.nhsclinicalscientists.info - Locations include any General hospital in the U.K
- Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine - www.ipem.ac.uk
- GE Healthcare - www.gehealthcare.com/uken/index.html - Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Bedford and Hatfield.
- Health Protection Agency - www.hpa.org.uk - various locations
Scientific Research
- Science and Technology Facilites Council - www.graduates.scitech.ac.uk - Oxford and Daresbury.
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Commmunications
- BT www.btplc.com/Careercentre A large research site near Ipswich
- Vodafone www.vodafone.co.uk/graduates
- Siemens www.siemens.co.uk
- Roke Manor Research www.roke.co.uk - Research Laboratory of Siemens specialising in communications
- Nortel www.nortelnetworks.com/employment
- Ericsson www.ericsson.com/uk/
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Security and Defence
- GCHQ www.gchq.gov.uk - National Intelligence and Security - Cheltham
- HM Government Communications Centre www.hmgcc.gov.uk - near Milton Keynes
- QinetiQ www.qinetiq.com - Malvern, Boscombe Down and Farnborough.
- DSTL (Defence Science and Technology Laboratory) www.dstl.gov.uk/careers/index.php - Farnborough, Porton Down near Salisbury, Portsdown West near Portsmouth and Sevenoaks, Kent (explosives/weapons technology)
- DESG (Defence Engineering and Science Group) - www.desg.mod.uk - Bristol, Andover, Wyton and London
- BAe Systems www.baesystems.com/careers/index.htm - various locations
- AWE (Atomic Weapons Establishment) www.awe.co.uk - Aldermaston near Reading.
- Rolls Royce www.rolls-royce.com/careers/uk/default.jsp - Filton (Bristol), Derby, Coventry and Glasgow.
- Lockheed Martin - www.lockheedmartin.co.uk - Ampthill (Bedford)
- Babcock www.babcock.co.uk/index.cfm/recordid.61/id.1 - Predominatly marine engineering - Rosyth (Edinburgh), Devonport (Plymouth)
- MBDA www.mbdacareers.co.uk - Missile systems company - Filton (Bristol), Stevenage, London, Lostock (Near Bolton)
- Home Office, Scientific Development Branch science.homeoffice.gov.uk/hosdb - Sandridge in Hertfordshire and Langhurst in West Sussex.
- Thales www.thalesonline.com/uk/Careers.html (formerly Thompson CSF and Racal) - various locations
- Cobham - www.cobham.com - Defence engineering
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Engineering (in a very broad sense) (Outside of Defence)
- Atkins - www.atkinsglobal.com/careers/ - Multinational engineering and design consultancy - Too many locations to mention.
- Hewlette Packard - www.hp.com - Birmingham, Bracknell, Bristol, Edinborugh, Leeds, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Warrington and Watford.
- Sharp Laboratorys of Europe - www.sle.sharp.co.uk/careers - Oxford Science Park
- Uniliver - www.unilever.co.uk/careers - Wirral, London, Leeds, Crawley, Bedford, Kingston upon Thames and Walton-on-Thames.
- e2v - www.e2v.com/careers - Chelmsford, High Wycombe and Lincoln
- Oxford Instruments - www.oxford-instruments.com - HQ in Abingdon (Near Oxford)
- Selex Galileo - www.selex-sas.com - Basildon, Cardigan, Edinburgh, Luton, Portsmouth and Southampton.
- Tessella - www.tessella.com/careers - Provides software solutions to the Scientific and engineering a industries - Abingdon, Burton, Stevenage, Warrington
- Areva - www.areva.com - Multinational nuclear energy company
- Bombardier - www.bombardierukgraduates.com - Derby and London
- FKI - www.fki.co.uk - Global Engineering group.
- Maxfordham - www.maxfordham.com - energy efficent systems - London, Cambridge and Edinburgh
- Agilent Technologies - www.jobs.agilent.com/locations/uk.html - Edinburgh, Bracknell and Winnersh (near Reading)
- Airbus - www.airbus.com - European aerospace company - Broughton (N.Wales) and Filton (Bristol)
- AugustaWestland - careers.whl.co.uk - Helicopter manufacture - Yeovil
- Faber Maunsell - www.fabermaunsell.com - Building, Transportation and environmental consultancy - various locations.
- Jacobs - www.jacobscareers.net - Technical services
- Mars - www.mars.com/ultimategrads - food engineering - Berkshire, Cambridgeshire, Leicestershire, East Anglia and Yorksire.
- Proctor and Gamble - www.pgcareers.com - various locations.
- Wolfson microelectronics - www.wolfsonmicro.com/careers - various locations
- Siemens - www.siemens.co.uk/grad - various locations
- MWH (Montgomery Watson Harza) - www.mwhglobal.com - various
- Advancesis - www.advancesis.com - Optoelectronics - Coventry
- Phillips - www.philips.com/about/careers/graduates/index.page - various
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Pharmecutical
- GlaxoSmithKline - www.gsk.com/uk-students - Pharmaceuticals - Various locations
- Pfizer - www.pfizer.co.uk - Pharmaceuticals - Walton Oaks and Sandwich
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Energy - Gas, Nuclear power and Oil companies
- British Energy www.british-energy.com nuclear power stations - electricity generation and supply
- National Grid www.nationalgrid.com
- BNFL (British Nuclear Fuels Ltd) - www.bnfl.co.uk
- E.On - www.eon-uk.com/careers - Midlands
- Magnox Electric - www.magnoxelectric.com/careers - Decomissioning of all the old Magnox nuclear power stations.
- Nukem - www.nukem.co.uk - Nuclear engineering services - Risley, Harwell, Dounreay, Winfrith and Windscale / Westlakes.
- AEA Technology - www.aeat.co.uk - Energy and climate change consultancy - various locations.
- Oil companies
- Shell www.shell.com/careers - Aberdeen, London, Manchester and Cheshire
- BPAmoco www.bp.com recruit scientists for research, and the processing and distribution of oil.
- ExxonMobil - www.exxonmobile.com/ukrecruitment - Leatherhead, Fawley, London, Aberdeen
- Gardline Surveys www.gardline.co.uk marine geophysics.
- BP - www.bp.com -
- British Nuclear Group - www.britishnucleargroup.com/graduates
- Schlumberger - www.slb.com/careers - Engineering firm for the oil and gas industry.
- EDF energy - www.edfenergy.com/graduates - London, Hove and Crawley.
- RWE npower - www.brightergraduates.com - Energy company - various locations
- Amec - www.amecnnc.com - Nuclear engineering consultancy
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Materials
- International Rectifier (Semiconductor Manufacturer) www.irf.com
- Snell & Wilcox www.snellwilcox.com Digital Signal Processing Manufacturer
- Corus (formerly British Steel) - www.corusgroupcareers.com - various locations
- RAPRA (Rubber and Plastics Research) www.rapra.net
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Environmental Physics
- The Met Office www.metoffice.gov.uk/corporate/recruitment/index.html - Exeter
- British Antarctic Survey www.antarctica.ac.uk - Antartica and Cambridge
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Patent
- European Patent Office www.european-patent-office.org
- Marks & Clerk - www.marks-clerk.com - Patent attorneys - Aberdeen, London, Birmingham, Cambridge, Chelyenham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester and Oxford.
- Haseltine Lake & Co. www.HaseltineLake.com patent attorneys.
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Other
- CERN www.cern.ch/jobs/ - Geneva, Switzerland
- National Physical Laboratory www.npl.co.uk - Richmond, London
- National Air Traffic Services www.nats.co.uk - Various
- Detica www.detica.com Information Intelligence consultancy firm - Guildford
- Accenture - www.accenture.com/Countries/UK - Computing consultantcy - Aberdeen, Edinbourgh, London, Manchester and Newcastle.
- RMC - www.rmconsultants.co.uk/careers.php - Main office is in Abingdon (near Oxford), smaller ofices in Warrington, Cumbria and Thurso.
- IPL (Information Processing Ltd) - www.ipl.com - Software development and systems integration - Bath
- Government Operational Research Service - www.operational-research.gov.uk - London, Croydon, Hastings, Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Sheffield, Darlington and Telford
- Transport Research Laboratory - www.trl.co.uk - Crowthorne near Reading
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Space Science
- European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS) - www.jobsatastrium.co.uk - Portsmouth and Stevenage
- European Space Agency www.esa.int/esaCP/index.html
- BT www.btplc.com/Careercentre satellite communications
- SciSys www.scisys.co.uk Mission control systems. Based in Wiltshire
See Space Careers www.space-careers.com contains the Space and Industry Directory, and vacancies.
Also see the International Space University www.isunet.edu
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JOBS OUTSIDE SCIENCE
Physics graduates are attractive to many employers because of their personal transferable skills rather than the specific skills that they have gained during their degree course. These skills include the ability to analyse information in a logical way, numeracy and problem solving skills. Jobs using these skills include:
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Computing
- Tessella www.tessella.co.uk - developer of Scientific Software -
- LogicaCMG www.logicacmg.com - recruits science graduates into computer consultancy.
- IBM www.ibm.com/uk
- Microsoft www.microsoft.com/uk/careers/
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Finance
Employers in banking, insurance and accountancy are attracted to science graduates. There are many traineeships available for new graduates irrespective of degree subject.
- The Bank of England - www.jobsatthebank.co.uk - London
- Morgan Stanley - www.morganstanely.com/careers/recruiting
Chartered Accountancy
- Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (ICAEW) includes training vacancies www.icaew.com/careers
- Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland www.icas.org.uk you can obtain a Scottish qualification with employers throughout the UK
- Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ireland www.icai.ie covers the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland
The "Big Four"
- Deloitte www.deloitte.com
- Ernst and Young www.ey.com
- KPMG www.kpmgcareers.co.uk
- PriceWaterhouseCoopers www.pwc.com
Actuarial Science
- Institute of Actuaries www.actuaries.org.uk
- Inside Careers Actuarial Careers Guide www.insidecareers.co.uk Excellent Guide to Actuarial Careers and Employers
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Websites with Careers Advice
- Inside Careers www.insidecareers.co.uk
- Prospects Web www.prospects.ac.uk
- ScienceCareers.org http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/career_development/europe
- SCom www.scom.com Recruitment agency for avionics, telecoms, air traffic and defence
- Get Hobsons - www.get.hobsons.co.uk
- TargetJobs - www.targetjobs.co.uk
- Graduate Jobs - www.graduate-jobs.com
- Grad Jobs - www.gradjobs.co.uk
- Milkround.com - www.milkround.com
- Best Companies Guide - www.bestcompaniesguide.co.uk
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Vacancy Sources for Physicists
- New Scientist www.newscientistjobs.com/graduate access to the job adverts.
- Jobs in the Academic Community www.jobs.ac.uk deals mainly with academic posts for postgraduates.
- PhysicsWorld www.physicsworld.com/cws/jobs
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