Physics after Engineering

       I'd like to start off by classifying exams into groups rather than viewing them individually, I'd strongly recommend readers to do the same, otherwise might lead to confusion-given the huge number of exams one can give. The point of separating by exam syllabus is that you can prepare yourself for all the exams under a group that has the same syllabus.    The Physics entrance exams can be divided into two categories broadly based on the education level of the students they're designed for, BSc level and MSc level. Do read the blog post [ How to do MSc Physics after B.Tech/B.E? ]  below to find out all the exams we can give. Here I'll be classifying and analyse them to see which of them suits whom. BSc Level Exams These exams are Screening tests for BSc grads to enter MSc or Integrated Ph.D. (MSc+PhD). All these exams have more or less the same syllabus, so preparing for one of them would mean you're mostly prepared for the other ones t...

Disclaimer: The initial post titles set by authors are later modified by the editor to be catchy and SEO friendly, the authors bear no responsibility in this regard. ⭐ Physics Book recommendations along with comprehensive reviews for JAM, JEST & GATE -  PAE Community  (An extensive collection of book reviews by our PAE members) ⭐ Physics online video lectures with comprehensive reviews for JAM, JEST & GATE -  PAE Community  (An extensive collection of video lecture reviews by our PAE members) ATTENTION!! : If you are here just for books, I'd recommend you go through the  updated post -  Physics Book for JAM, JEST & GATE   along with comprehensive reviews . This current post has the perspective of a single person, but the above post is written by a number of brilliant people from our community (which also include this author) with different perspectives. The editor highly recommends going through the above post. List of Books used for JA...

Here is a post on Books, lectures, and notes recommendations for JEST physics. [We recommend you also go through this excellent   post by Deepamla(AIR 3) on How she cracked JEST ] Electromagnetism : Griffiths Electrodynamics(excellent for problem solving). The book is more than enough for any physics entrance exam. Quantum mechanics : Again, Griffiths QM is a self-contained book. Book by Prof. Ajoy Ghatak is also nice Lectures : MIT OCW lectures by Prof. Allan Adams(highly recommend) and Prof. Barton Zweibach. Statistical physics : Lecture notes by Prof. David Tong. Reif statistical physics is a standard. book Lectures  by Prof. John Preskill are highly recommended. Classical mechanics:  Taylor's  CM is an excellent book for problem-solving. Landau Lifshitz mechanics is also recommended. Special Theory of Relativity : I found Rindler’s book on relativity very helpful. I highly recommend solving problems from this site: sites.google.com...

I was asked to write about my interview experiences but I didn't want to make 7 different posts so I have decided to write one essay summarizing all those experiences. I have been to interviews at the following institutes: TIFR-Mumbai(I-PhD and Ph.D.), ICTS(I-PhD and Ph.D.), IISc(I-PhD), IISER-Pune(I-PhD), IUCAA/NCRA(Ph.D. preselection) Amongst these, I cleared TIFR Mumbai (IPhD in 2016 and Ph.D. in 2019), ICTS(Ph.D. in 2019), and IUCAA/NCRA(December 2015). So, instead of telling you stories of those experiences, I have decided to write about what I learned from those interviews. 1. Soft skills play a role albeit a really small one. They aren't as important as the case is in a corporate job interview, but the way you speak and dress always, even if subconscious, has some effect on the interviewer's mind. This does not mean that you have to dress up in all formals. A well-ironed shirt with jeans works well for me. Although I did clear the IUCAA interview wearing a t...

Hello people, I am not your average engineering graduate now getting into physics. I left engineering in the first year itself not wanting to torture myself any further and went for a undergraduate followed by a post-graduate degree in physics. These are the books I have found useful. The titles in red are under-grad level and those in blue are post-grad.(I haven't read many of them cover to cover but only relevant topics.)    Basic Physics(12th level): One of the biggest errors I have seen people do while trying to crack entrance exams is to jump directly to Electrodynamics and Quantum Physics without having their basics cleared. Please don't do this. Make sure there aren't any problems you cannot solve in books like Resnick, Halliday and Krane, H. C Verma, etc. If you are appearing for I-PhD entrance, JAM and other MSc entrances, these are the books that will contribute to a big chunk of the questions. Also, these form the base on which undergraduate physics is b...

Hi I'm Yash. I was called for the interview at TIFR-H via my JEST score on 13th June for Int-PhD. The institute seemed to be located in a remote area. But heck, it's the same with almost every institute I've been to (except tifr-m :)). I take a quick a look around and head straight to the Auditorium. The staff and the professors were welcoming and friendly. After verification I was sent to the interview room. I had to wait for an hour outside the room before they called me in. I had four professors on my Panel. Prof Surajit Sengupta, Prof Kabir Ramola, Prof Karthik V Raman and Prof Pranav Shirhatti. Interview started with them asking about my background in Physics and how much Physics have I studied since I'm a Computer Science student. I honestly told them that I've done a year of Physics during undergrad and 6 months coaching in Delhi. They were very warm and comforting, occasionally exchanging jokes. So they started with asking easy questions in topics of...

              Hello, fellow Astro-enthusiasts. In this blog, I will tell you about how I was able to enter into the field of astronomy/astrophysics despite my engineering background. I hope my experiences can be of some help to you.  Let's get started.  (If you are short on time, skip to Section 4) 1. Background I did my B. Tech. in Mechanical Engineering from IIIT Jabalpur. Although it is an institute of national importance, still it lacks the kind of courses or infrastructure IITs have. In my first year, I joined a research lab in our institute and experienced research in mechanical engineering. Though it was an important project, the work I was doing there lacked a certain gravity *no pun intended* to me.  I later got exposure to Astronomy through the Astronomy and Physics Society of our institute. A couple of my seniors were into astronomy and they told me about vast arrays of online courses available on platforms like ...