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Graduate Outcomes

Physics

First Destinations

First Destinations

This graph illustrates the first destinations of recent alumni from the last four graduating classes. Details for each of these categories can be found below.
  • 36% Employment
  • 51% Graduate School
  • 3% Post-Graduate Service
  • 5% Fellowships
  • 0% Continuing Education
  • 5% Other

Top Locations

Top Locations

These are among the top locations of graduates in this major. Whether working, studying, or volunteering, you'll find Grinnellians all over the world.
Map of the world
  • Chicago, IL
  • Madison, WI
  • Minneapolis, MN
  • San Francisco, CA

Employment

Employment

There is no typical path of a Grinnell graduate. As this list illustrates, Grinnellians work across all types of industries working with a rich array of employers.
Employer Position
Ahlstrom-Munksjö process engineer
Department of Energy intern
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab advanced biofuels postbaccalaureate researcher
Los Alamos National Laboratory post-baccalaureate researcher
Noble Network of Charter Schools engineering teacher
NVIDIA solutions architect
Raytheon Missiles & Defense systems engineer
Physics

Employment Data

Employer Position Location
Ahlstrom-Munksjö process engineer Mosinee, WI
Best Buy sales associate Flossmoor, IL
Deloitte technology analyst Arlington, VA
Department of Energy intern Ames, IA
Epic technical problem solver Verona, WI
Federal Reserve Bank of New York research analyst New York, NY
Glue Visualizations freelance software developer Lexington, MA
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab advanced biofuels postbaccalaureate researcher Emeryville, CA
Lidar Guys light art technician Albuquerque, NM
Los Alamos National Laboratory post-baccalaureate researcher Los Alamos, NM
Noble Network of Charter Schools engineering teacher Chicago, IL
NVIDIA solutions architect San Francisco, CA
Raytheon Missiles & Defense systems engineer Tewksbury, MA
Rush University Medical Center lab technician Chicago, IL
Salesforce data/research analyst San Francisco, CA
Sean Casten for Congress Campaign intern Chicago, IL
Sunflower Stables horse trainer Corvallis, OR
TD Ameritrade financial services trainee Omaha, NE
TMC Transportation software developer Ames, IA
Total Wine & More not specified Maple Grove, MN
WuXi AppTec associate sample coordinator St. Paul, MN
YMCA Camp Widjiwagan Tripping Center staff Ely, MN

Positions Related to Career Goals

Positions Related to Career Goals

This graph illustrates the extent to which our graduates' first job is aligned with their career goals. It's one thing to find a job; it's an entirely different thing to land the job you want!
  • 11% Completely
  • 56% Moderately
  • 33% Slightly
  • 0% Not at All

Graduate Schools

Graduate Schools

Grinnell graduates are particularly well prepared for graduate study. You'll find Grinnellians attend the best graduate and professional school programs around the world.
Institution Degree Field of Study
Boston University PhD materials science
Georgia Institute of Technology MS aerospace engineering
Ohio State University PhD astrophysics
University of Chicago PhD astronomy
University of Hawaii MS civil engineering
University of Illinois MS nuclear, plasma & radiological engineering
University of Massachusetts PhD medical physics
University of New Hampshire PhD physics
Physics

Graduate Schools Data

Institution Degree Field of Study Location
Boston University PhD materials science Boston, MA
California Institute of Technology PhD theoretical chemistry Pasadena, CA
Cornell University PhD applied physics Ithaca, NY
Georgia Institute of Technology MS aerospace engineering Atlanta, GA
Harvard University PhD astronomy Cambridge, MA
Northwestern University PhD astronomy Evanston, IL
Northwestern University PhD materials science & engineering Evanston, IL
Northwestern University PhD physics Evanston, IL
Ohio State University PhD astrophysics Columbus, OH
Oregon State University PhD civil engineering Corvallis, OR
Purdue University PhD chemistry West Lafayette, IN
University of California PhD physical chemistry Berkeley, CA
University of California PhD physics Davis, CA
University of Chicago PhD astronomy Chicago, IL
University of Edinburgh MSc physics Edinburgh, UK
University of Georgia MA classics Athens, GA
University of Hawaii MS civil engineering Honolulu, HI
University of Illinois MS accountancy Champaign, IL
University of Illinois MS nuclear, plasma & radiological engineering Urbana, IL
University of Massachusetts PhD medical physics Lowell, MA
University of Minnesota JD law Minneapolis, MN
University of Minnesota PhD computer science Minneapolis, MN
University of New Hampshire PhD physics Durham, NH
University of Science & Technology of China MBA business administration Hefei, China
University of Texas PhD computer science Austin, TX
University of Wisconsin MS electrical engineering Madison, WI
University of Wisconsin PhD biophysics Madison, WI
University of Wisconsin PhD physics Madison, WI
Wayne State University PhD medical physics Detroit, MI

Graduate School Acceptance Info

Of those who applied to and were accepted to at least one program, this chart illustrates the percentage of admitted students who were accepted to either their first or second choice program and institution.
79%
79% of students are accepted to their first or second choice graduate institution and program

Service

Service

Each year, Grinnellians advance causes and serve communities around the world as full-time volunteers.

Organization

  • Northeast Iowa Food Bank
  • Peace Corps
Physics

Service Data

Organization Location
Northeast Iowa Food Bank Waterloo, IA
Peace Corps Chengdu, China

Fellowships

Fellowships

Grinnell has a rich history of producing recipients of some of the most prestigious post-graduate fellowships and awards.

Organization

  • Thomas J. Watson Foundation
Physics

Fellowships Data

Organization Location
Grinnell College Grinnell, IA
Thomas J. Watson Foundation Bosnia, India, Peru, Thailand

Experiential Learning

Experiential Learning

Participation in high-impact experiences is a hallmark of a Grinnell education. The following graphs illustrate the percentage of graduates who completed internships, research experiences (both on- and off-campus), service, and/or off-campus study prior to graduating from Grinnell.
Internships
31%
Physics

Internships Data

Organization Field Location
CAVU Biotherapies research/science Houston, TX
College Kickstart computing/technology Pleasanton, CA
Commonwealth Edison, Inc. research/science Chicago, IL
Community Power Network government/public policy Washington, DC
Fermilab research/science Batavia, IL
GINKIO sales/marketing Paris, France
Hawaiian Dredging Construction Company business administration/management Honolulu, HI
Hertie School of Governance education Berlin, Germany
Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies business administration/management Chicago, IL
Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies education Prague, Czechia
Medical College of Wisconsin research/science Milwaukee, WI
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center research/science Greenbelt, MD
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory research/science Pasadena, CA
New Mexico Tech research/science Socorro, NM
Paktronix Systems LLC data science/analytics Omaha, NE
Papageorgiou General Hospital healthcare Thessaloniki, Greece
PD Aerospace research/science Aichi, Japan
Space Telescope Science Institute research/science Baltimore, MD
The University of Tokyo research/science Tokyo, Japan
TrustRadius business administration/management Grinnell, IA
Washington State Department of Enterprise Services research/science Olympia, WA
Washington University in St. Louis research/science St. Louis, MO
Research
90%
Physics

Research Data

Organization Field Location
Aachen University thermal stability of glass fibers Aachen, Germany
Argonne National Laboratory wear & friction properties of novel hydrocarbon lubricants Lemont, IL
Brookhaven National Laboratory quantum yield of novel scintillating fluids Upton, NY
California Institute of Technology gravitational waves Pasadena, CA
California institute of Technology planetary physics Pasadena, CA
CERN particle physics Geneva, Switzerland
Chinese Academy of Sciences chemistry Beijing, China
Cornell University physics Ithaca, NY
Department of Energy materials science Ames, IA
East Carolina University biomechanics Greenville, NC
Florida State University physics Tallahassee, FL
MD Anderson Cancer Center biomedical imaging Houston, TX
Montana State University solar physics Bozeman, MT
Morehead State University satellite development Morehead, KY
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center astronomy Greenbelt, MD
National Institute of Standards and Technology structural engineering Gaithersburg, MD
New Jersey Institute of Technology biomedical engineering & tissue modeling Newark, NJ
North Carolina State University soil physics Raleigh, NC
North Carolina State University virtual world generation for interactive games Raleigh, NC
Northwestern University materials science Evanston, IL
Northwestern University materials science Evanston, IL
Oak Ridge National Lab chemistry Oak Ridge, TN
Oak Ridge National Laboratory machine learning in computational chemistry Oak Ridge, TN
Oak Ridge National Laboratory materials science Oak Ridge, TN
Oregon State University robotics Corvallis, OR
Oregon State University robotics Corvallis, OR
Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory runaway electrons Princeton, NJ
Space Telescope Science Institute exoplanetary astronomy Baltimore, MD
Stanford University robotics Stanford, CA
Universität Koblenz-Landau physics Landau in der Pfalz, Germany
University of California electrical engineering Los Angeles, CA
University of Chicago quantum physics Chicago, IL
University of Colorado solar and space physics Boulder, CO
University of Colorado solar physics Boulder, CO
University of Minnesota novel machine learning algorithms for pattern recognition Minneapolis, MN
University of South Carolina photolithography Columbia, SC
University of Texas materials science Dallas, TX
University of Wisconsin astroparticle physics Madison, WI
University of Wisconsin C++ modeling of neutrino particle collisions River Falls, WI
University of Wisconsin lithium ion battery physical chemistry Madison, WI
University of Wyoming high redshift quasars Laramie, WY
US Naval Research Laboratory medical physics Haiku, HI
Zhejiang University of Technology historic businesses Hangzhou, China
Service
54%
Off-Campus Study
25%

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