Physics Bachelors Initial Employment, Academic Years 2023-24 and 2024-25

Report Highlights

• After more than a decade of generally increasing proportions of new physics bachelor’s degree recipients immediately entering the workforce, the proportion has declined by almost 10 percent during the two most recent years. (Figure 2)
• More than a third of new physics bachelors in the workforce indicated that they hoped to enroll in graduate school in the future, with the majority intending to do so in the next year.
• The private sector continues to employ the majority of new physics bachelors that entered the workforce (Figure 3).
• Overall, about three-quarters of employed physics bachelors were working in a STEM field, with engineering being the most common (Figure 5).
• Starting salaries varied by employment sector and field, with physics bachelor’s degree recipients working in private-sector STEM positions earning the highest median starting salary of $75,000 (Figure 6).
• Virtually all employed physics bachelor’s degree recipients in STEM positions reported regularly working on teams and solving technical problems, while relatively few reported regularly managing people or budgets (Figure 7).
• Almost half of employed physics bachelors reported using AI in their work, most commonly for “Learning new or complex concepts”, “Automating repetitive tasks or workflows”, and “Writing, debugging, or optimizing code” (Figure 8).
  

Initial Outcomes

Figure 1

• About half of the physics bachelors receiving their degrees in the 2023-24 and 2024-25 academic years were either employed or seeking employment in the winter following receiving their degree.
• Physics and astronomy were the most commonly reported fields of graduate study, followed by engineering, mathematics, and education. Engineering accounted for half of the students pursuing graduate studies outside physics and astronomy.
• Among physics bachelors not enrolled in graduate study, 36% expressed an interest in enrolling in the future, with about two-thirds of these individuals hoping to enroll within the next year.

Figure 2

• The proportion of new physics bachelor’s degree recipients entering the workforce rose steadily from 35% to 51% for graduates earning their degrees in academic years 2011-12 through 2022-23. This trend has reversed for graduates from the 2023–24 and 2024–25 academic years, with the proportion entering the workforce declining to 42%, a 9% drop.
  

Employment Sectors and Fields

Figure 3

• As has historically been the case, the private sector employed the majority of new physics bachelors, followed by colleges and universities.
• Seventy percent of physics bachelors employed at college or universities planned to enroll in graduate school in the future.
• Six percent of employed physics bachelors held their current positions for six months or longer before receiving their degrees.
  

Figure 4

• Overall, 19% of employed new physics bachelors held part-time positions in the winter following receipt of their degrees.
• New physics bachelors employed part-time were considerably more likely than those employed full-time to plan on pursuing graduate study in the future (56% versus 32%).

Figure 5

• Engineering continues to be the most common field of employment among new physics bachelors.
• The majority of new physics bachelors employed in non-STEM positions reported regularly solving technical problems. These positions included jobs in food service, finance, administration, and manual labor.
  

Salaries

Figure 6

• New physics bachelors employed in private-sector STEM positions had the highest median starting salary ($75,000), followed by those employed in civilian government positions ($70,000).
• Starting salaries varied considerably among new physics bachelors employed in private-sector non-STEM positions who reported regularly solving technical problems. Those in similar positions who rarely or never solved technical problems had the lowest median starting salary.
  

Knowledge and Skills used on the Job

Figure 7

• Physics bachelors employed in STEM-related positions regularly used a wide range of both technical and interpersonal skills.
• Virtually all physics bachelors employed in STEM fields reported regularly working on teams and solving technical problems, while relatively few managed people or budgets.
  

AI Usage

Figure 8

• Overall, 44% of employed new physics bachelors reported using AI tools in their positions.
• The most frequently cited AI use cases include: “Learning new or complex concepts”, “Automating repetitive tasks or workflows”, and “Writing, debugging, or optimizing code.”

Methodology

Each fall, the American Institute of Physics conducts its Survey of Enrollments and Degrees, asking physics and astronomy departments to provide information on student enrollments and degrees conferred during the previous academic year. Departments are also asked to provide the names and contact information of recent degree recipients. This information is used to conduct follow-up surveys during the winter following the academic year in which students received their degrees.

This report presents the initial post-degree outcomes of physics bachelor’s degree recipients from the 2023–24 and 2024–25 academic years combined. During these years, 7,776 and 8,108 physics bachelor’s degrees were awarded, respectively. Follow-up survey invitations were sent directly to degree recipients for whom contact information was provided. To help determine the outcomes of non-responding degree recipients and obtain updated contact information, we also contacted their advisors. We obtained initial post-degree information for 22% of all physics bachelor’s degree recipients, with 81% of this information coming directly from the degree recipients. Five percent of degree recipients for whom outcome information was obtained had left the United States following graduation and were excluded from the analyses presented in this report.