ATAR Notes: Forum
Uni Stuff => Universities - New South Wales => Australian National University => Topic started by: EvangelionZeta on May 18, 2010, 05:34:25 pm
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Just putting a roll call at this preliminary stage...
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I'm definitely considering ANU.
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Being drawn closer to Ph.B (science) as the year progresses...
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w00t w00t, more of you. Feel free to ask Eriny (Arts - Literature and Pol. Sci, I think), /0 (Science - Physics) or me (Science - maths) about anything PhB related, btw.
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I'm actually not that confident I'd be accepted, since my extra-curricular record is essentially non-existent. The only thing I'd have going for me is my ATAR (and even that is starting to disappear).
Oh, and I was taking a look at some of the majors available and I was wondering, what's the difference between studying mathematical physics and theoretical physics+maths? Would you gain less depth into the respective disciplines?
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Meh, I had barely any extracurriculars. It's more ATAR based, really.
And there's no real difference. Also, in PhB Science you don't actually have to complete a major, you just have to do enough courses that will allow you to do honours in something. So it more comes down to whether you'd rather do honours in mathematical physics or theoretical physics, which is up to you (in four years' time...).
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Isn't Eriny doing Philosophy and Anthropology? I might be completely wrong...
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Meh, I had barely any extracurriculars. It's more ATAR based, really.
And there's no real difference. Also, in PhB Science you don't actually have to complete a major, you just have to do enough courses that will allow you to do honours in something. So it more comes down to whether you'd rather do honours in mathematical physics or theoretical physics, which is up to you (in four years' time...).
Oh, really? Thought they wanted some kind of extra application to be sent in. What's with that?
I'm not sure exactly what I want to do yet, although definitely looking at mathematics/theoretical particle physics/cosmology. Preferably, I'd like an arrangement where I can defer that decision until honors level so I can get a better idea of what each entails.
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Isn't Eriny doing Philosophy and Anthropology? I might be completely wrong...
Oh yeah. Possibly.
Meh, I had barely any extracurriculars. It's more ATAR based, really.
And there's no real difference. Also, in PhB Science you don't actually have to complete a major, you just have to do enough courses that will allow you to do honours in something. So it more comes down to whether you'd rather do honours in mathematical physics or theoretical physics, which is up to you (in four years' time...).
Oh, really? Thought they wanted some kind of extra application to be sent in. What's with that?
I'm not sure exactly what I want to do yet, although definitely looking at mathematics/theoretical particle physics/cosmology. Preferably, I'd like an arrangement where I can defer that decision until honors level so I can get a better idea of what each entails.
Yeah, in that application I just included things like UMEP maths and my results in the Westpac.
And like I said, you don't really need to worry about a major in PhB Science, so you can just do subjects you're interested in up until honours (but you need enough of a background in an area to actually succeed at honours...).
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I'll have to get in touch with the faculty about the subjects.
How does the Ph.B do in terms of eligibility into post-graduate courses, particularly overseas at top American universities? Would it be a step over UoM/Monash, etc?
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Hmmm well from what I've heard, since the PhB is primarily a research-oriented degree, it is probably the best degree to take if you want to go into postgraduate study. And if you want to do postgrad overseas it is great choice too, since the PhB is internationally recognised.
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out of curiousity, to people currently at ANU. Are there people living at your college who have moved states to undertake normal courses such as Arts and Commerce?
Or are they just doing the PhB stuff like you guys, which isn't offered anywhere else. I'm not too sure this may be a stupid question but I'm considering Commerce at ANU. Do people actually come from other states to study average degrees
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I'll have to get in touch with the faculty about the subjects.
How does the Ph.B do in terms of eligibility into post-graduate courses, particularly overseas at top American universities? Would it be a step over UoM/Monash, etc?
I'll let you know in six months when I find out for myself ;)
out of curiousity, to people currently at ANU. Are there people living at your college who have moved states to undertake normal courses such as Arts and Commerce?
Or are they just doing the PhB stuff like you guys, which isn't offered anywhere else. I'm not too sure this may be a stupid question but I'm considering Commerce at ANU. Do people actually come from other states to study average degrees
Yeah there are heaps. More often though there are people who've come for Law because ANU only requires an ATAR of 95, as opposed to 99+ at Monash/USyd/UNSW.
But yes, there are plenty of people from Sydney/Brisbane/Melbourne/Adelaide/Darwin etc. who are just doing "normal" degrees.
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out of curiousity, to people currently at ANU. Are there people living at your college who have moved states to undertake normal courses such as Arts and Commerce?
Or are they just doing the PhB stuff like you guys, which isn't offered anywhere else. I'm not too sure this may be a stupid question but I'm considering Commerce at ANU. Do people actually come from other states to study average degrees
The school captain from MGS in 09 (Mattingly) is currently up there doing Arts/Law. :p
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Besides the research opportunities, is there a big difference in the core subject material between various universities? i.e. would going to Monash instead of ANU undermine my knowledge? I've been taking a look at Monash's research opportunities in astrophysics, which seem pretty good, although I wouldn't want my basis in physics and mathematics to be compromised.
On another note, whilst CSPA has the areas of research I'd be interested in, does anyone have any idea how likely it is to get an opportunity to do research during the undergraduate degree?
Also I hear it isn't necessary to do any extensive, specific study in astrophysics in order to do it later on; how true is this?
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How much harder is it to get in to? Can non yr 12 apply too? I probably wouldn't applt, but the Arts International Relations course does look really good.. even if I did consider applying I could never afford to study interstate.
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Besides the research opportunities, is there a big difference in the core subject material between various universities? i.e. would going to Monash instead of ANU undermine my knowledge? I've been taking a look at Monash's research opportunities in astrophysics, which seem pretty good, although I wouldn't want my basis in physics and mathematics to be compromised.
It depends very much on the area. Monash have excellent courses available on theoretical astrophysics, while ANU's are more experimental (and some involve going to real observatories). In other disciplines I'm not so sure - Monash is quite rubbish at pure maths compared to ANU, though okay at applied. ANU has a very strong theoretical physics department, and its experimental in most areas is quite strong too, though Monash does have the synchotron...
On another note, whilst CSPA has the areas of research I'd be interested in, does anyone have any idea how likely it is to get an opportunity to do research during the undergraduate degree?
Again, depends on the area. In maths you'll struggle to do anything more groundbreaking than study a particular case of something unimportant that no one's been bothered to do before, but in some other areas it can be different. My friend has just been published in a pretty decent journal on the basis of some experimental research he did as part of an Advanced Studies Course in nonlinear optics (physics, of course).
Also I hear it isn't necessary to do any extensive, specific study in astrophysics in order to do it later on; how true is this?
No idea. I suppose a solid maths/physics background would mean that it wouldn't be too hard to pick up most of the subtleties quickly.
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I do anthropology and philosophy :)
I guess most interstate people I know do either PhB or Law/Something, but if you like ANU, I don't see why you wouldn't do an 'ordinary' degree.
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Besides the research opportunities, is there a big difference in the core subject material between various universities? i.e. would going to Monash instead of ANU undermine my knowledge? I've been taking a look at Monash's research opportunities in astrophysics, which seem pretty good, although I wouldn't want my basis in physics and mathematics to be compromised.
It depends very much on the area. Monash have excellent courses available on theoretical astrophysics, while ANU's are more experimental (and some involve going to real observatories). In other disciplines I'm not so sure - Monash is quite rubbish at pure maths compared to ANU, though okay at applied. ANU has a very strong theoretical physics department, and its experimental in most areas is quite strong too, though Monash does have the synchotron...
Speaking of which, is the mathematics used in advanced theoretical physics (in particular, stuff like supersymmetric string theory, etc) more applied or pure maths? I haven't actually done any higher level physics studies, so my motivation to do the subject is mainly from pure interest, with what I know mostly derived from wikipedia reading. I'm also curious how 'research' in theoretical physics works on an undergraduate level. Am I right in assuming that since it's theoretical, I don't actually have to use any research facilities, etc. to conduct experiments? My impression of theoretical physics is that its mainly thinking, maths and computational calculations.
Based on what I've heard from a few people, I guess opting to go to Monash essentially limits my specialization options to astrophysics. ANU seems the better choice as a university, I'm just reluctant to go to leave Victoria. Also, when you say ANU's astrophysics is more observational, does that mean it has a weak theoretical component? I don't know if its strange, but the notion of going to real laboratories and observatories to conduct experiments and research isn't very appealing to me.
Is it a reasonable conclusion to say that if I go to Monash, I'd be able to get a good focus on theoretical astrophysics with a relatively weaker foundation in mathematics and physics, whereas ANU would give me strong options across the board (at the cost of moving interstate)?
On another note, whilst CSPA has the areas of research I'd be interested in, does anyone have any idea how likely it is to get an opportunity to do research during the undergraduate degree?
Again, depends on the area. In maths you'll struggle to do anything more groundbreaking than study a particular case of something unimportant that no one's been bothered to do before, but in some other areas it can be different. My friend has just been published in a pretty decent journal on the basis of some experimental research he did as part of an Advanced Studies Course in nonlinear optics (physics, of course).
So, in the overall scheme of things, how important are the research projects you do during your undergraduate? I thought having the experience would be helpful in terms of gaining entry into a good grad school. The CSPA at Monash have a lot of stuff I'm interested in, like high energy astrophysics and particle cosmology. Problem is there isn't very detailed information available on the website in regards to how difficult it is to get a position to do undergrad research and what exactly I'll be able to do.
By the way, thanks for taking time to answer my seemingly endless list of questions.