Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between health physicists and computational physicists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a health physicist and a computational physicist. Additionally, a health physicist has an average salary of $74,942, which is higher than the $61,519 average annual salary of a computational physicist.
The top three skills for a health physicist include radioactive materials, oversight and ALARA. The most important skills for a computational physicist are C++, technical support, and DOE.
| Health Physicist | Computational Physicist | |
| Yearly salary | $74,942 | $61,519 |
| Hourly rate | $36.03 | $29.58 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 47,640 | 865 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 58% |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A health physicist investigates research principles by which radiation interacts with living systems and matter. Health physicists study environmental radioactivity levels. Part of their research is radiation's effects on biological systems in space and on earth. They ensure the proper functioning of the x-ray and the storage of radiation therapy. Part of their responsibility is to make sure that scientists are following regulations and safely using their radioactive materials. Also, they are advocates of human and environmental protection.
Computational physicists are professionals who implement numerical analysis and physics functionals in solving problems. The physicists apply knowledge from different disciplines like mathematics, computer science, and statistics for a theory test. They prepare and issue management, technical, and administrative policies for the safety program of directorate radiation. Their job includes the scientific validation of atmospheric dispersion equations. Also, they conduct collection site simulations such as thermal transfer, effluent release, and radiometry.
Health physicists and computational physicists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Health Physicist | Computational Physicist | |
| Average salary | $74,942 | $61,519 |
| Salary range | Between $41,000 And $134,000 | Between $28,000 And $133,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | Bethesda, MD |
| Highest paying state | New York | Alaska |
| Best paying company | UCI Health | Applied Materials |
| Best paying industry | Energy | - |
There are a few differences between a health physicist and a computational physicist in terms of educational background:
| Health Physicist | Computational Physicist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 58% |
| Most common major | Physics | Physics |
| Most common college | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor |
Here are the differences between health physicists' and computational physicists' demographics:
| Health Physicist | Computational Physicist | |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 76.9% Female, 23.1% | Male, 84.6% Female, 15.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 2.8% Unknown, 3.4% Hispanic or Latino, 8.0% Asian, 7.2% White, 77.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 0.8% Unknown, 3.3% Hispanic or Latino, 6.7% Asian, 7.9% White, 80.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 24% | 24% |