A good sense of humour and an optimistic slant on life should be prerequisites for any potential physics student aiming to gain a degree in what Leonard Shlain calls "The King of sciences". Of course the evidence from universities across the world shows that a sense of humour (as well as good dress sense and personal hygiene) are not among the entry requirements for physics courses but I put forth my argument here as to why they should be.
Malcolm X once said "Knowledge is Power. Arm yourself" so, armed with my physics degree I have gone through hell and high water to try and make it pay for itself as the propoganda says. After x years your degree will pay for itself, because you will earn x more than those without a degree go the popular headlines in the media. What they seem to forget to add is the little addendum which reads, unless it is physics, the hardest subject but the least likely to get you a job on account that no fucker understands it
If every year were a cake, as I believe that they are, the slice of the cake representing how long I've been unemployed would make quite a tasty snack.
Everyone really should have a good sense of humour, but we physicists have got good reason to be in charge of the best one. After all, we make mental leaps and bounds literally into different dimensions, pulling together advanced mathematics, computing and the latest techmnology in pursuit of knowledge arguably more profound and affecting than that found in any other subject.
A good physicist must utilise tools from such diverse fields as theology, philosophy and art to gain a full appreciation of the immense power at his disposal. But because no-one has any idea what the hell physics actually is we find it difficult to get jobs filing for business studies students, students whose academic achievement does not even qualify them to clean our boots.
Overqualification is a hilarious excuse which I recognise now to mean. what the hell is physics exactly!?!" to which I would answer - it means I have the knowledge to do your course and your job in my sleep mate.
It seems that I am grossly overqualified for anything I actually want to do and grossly inderqualified for a load of jobs that I don't want to do. In short I am fucked. But you've got to laugh...
But todays overqualification story was a classic. This has nothing really to do with physics as I decided to get back to my roots and apply for work in a pharmacy in Woolwich.
I have worked in the family pharmacy for as long as I can remember, which is probably about 10 years, gaining in that time every qualification that you can get as a pharmacy assistant and more. On top of that I used to write for a pharmacy magazine. Most people who apply for pharmacy jobs don't have one thing to show and the poor pharmacist today nearly had a heart attack when he saw my physics degree on my CV as well as 10 pharmacy qualifications.
So it looks like it's back to the drawing board for me, unemployed and teaching myself art as well as physics. Looks like I can have my cake and eat it.
How physicists without a sense of humour can cope is beyond me though it must be said
