Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between 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 physicist and a computational physicist. Additionally, a physicist has an average salary of $110,869, which is higher than the $61,519 average annual salary of a computational physicist.
The top three skills for a physicist include patients, radiology and oncology. The most important skills for a computational physicist are C++, technical support, and DOE.
| Physicist | Computational Physicist | |
| Yearly salary | $110,869 | $61,519 |
| Hourly rate | $53.30 | $29.58 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 803 | 865 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 53% | Bachelor's Degree, 58% |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
Physicists explain the effect of structures, phenomena, and forces on the natural world. Physicists determine and explore the primary principles governing the behavior and structure of matter. They study energy generation and transfer as well as the interaction between matter and energy. Their job involves the development of theories on the properties of matter, time, space, and energy. The position requires extensive research for technical papers and reports contributing to the industry. Physicians teach and lecture students on the laws associated with physics.
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.
Physicists and computational physicists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Physicist | Computational Physicist | |
| Average salary | $110,869 | $61,519 |
| Salary range | Between $68,000 And $180,000 | Between $28,000 And $133,000 |
| Highest paying City | Rochester, NY | Bethesda, MD |
| Highest paying state | Connecticut | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Sanford Health | Applied Materials |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a physicist and a computational physicist in terms of educational background:
| Physicist | Computational Physicist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 53% | Bachelor's Degree, 58% |
| Most common major | Physics | Physics |
| Most common college | Harvard University | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor |
Here are the differences between physicists' and computational physicists' demographics:
| Physicist | Computational Physicist | |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.9% Female, 16.1% | Male, 84.6% Female, 15.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 2.0% Unknown, 3.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.4% Asian, 13.2% White, 73.4% 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% |