Astronomy Career Suggestions?

[Callisto]

I have loved astronomy for a long time. My heart drops in excitement anytime I discover a new messier object in my telescope, and astronomy is more than a science to me; its a way to escape the everyday pressure of life, and travel to a world of galaxies, nebulas and globular clusters. I definitely want to pursue a career in astronomy, someway, somehow. What should I do, should I get a phd? What colleges are good for learning astronomy/physics? I really have no one to consult about this. What careers are possible.

When suggesting careers, I must say that I enjoy my solitude, in everything I do. I wouldn't be too eager working for a boss, taking orders, especially in astronomy. Thanks. By the way, I am 15 years old.

[thecrazycatlady]

You can teach unappreciative college kids Astronomy 100 and get paid enough for food and housing.


Or you can develop your own shuttle, go into space and live there. It is like a dream come true for you. You could chill with the stars as they go through their life cycles.

[Stardustspeck]

Didn't I already answer this for you once?

Anyway...

If you want a career in astronomy - then yes - you need to do a PhD.
You could work in a planetarium or museum without PhD - but that's about it.

As for careers - basically it's college professor or research scientist for a government lab (e.g. NASA). either way you need a PhD.

The nice thing about either job is that you tend to have a lot of freedom. You do have a "boss", but you tend to be able to do more or less what you want (within certain limits).
I'm a university professor which means that I am more or less my own boss. I have to teach certain courses each semester, and I don;t get to set the schedule - but that's pretty much the only limit. I do work long hours, and I also mentor and advise both undergraduate and graduate students, but that is on my own schedule. I also do a lot of "outreach" - i.e. giving talks etc for the general public. And then the main part of my job is research (I study stardust). I have to write proposals to raise money and get telescope time - but in both cases it is on topics of my choosing.
This is the best job in the world. It's not easy - but I get paid to think about stardust and share my knowledge.

As for how to get there - take as much science and math as you can in high school. If you can take calculus before you get to college, this will help you a lot.
Once you get to college - make sure you get to do some research as an undergraduate - it will serve you well in getting into grad school (and remember this when picking colleges).

[eri]

There aren't many jobs in astronomy if you don't have a PhD, and even then, there aren't a lot of jobs. But plenty of us are going for it anyway. Having a PhD in physics and studying astronomy is probably the way to go, since a career in physics will let you teach or do astronomy and physics, whereas with a PhD in astronomy, people will assume you can't do physics at a PhD level.

Most astronomers work for colleges and universities, teaching and doing research, for national labs (like NOAO, NSO, LLNL, LANL), or NASA. While we collaborate with other people, you're still doing a lot on your own, and we don't tend to work in big groups where there's a hierarchy.

I'll list the top grad schools in astronomy. Any of those would be good for your physics major (astronomy, math, and computer science courses are useful in undergrad, but physics is essential) and then you can go to another for grad school (you are discouraged from attending the same school).

Harvard, CalTech, Berkeley, Princeton, Columbia, Cornell, UC Santa Cruz, UCLA, Stanford, U Chicago, U Toronto, U Arizona, UT Austin, U Washington, U Hawaii, Ohio State, UMass Amherst, U Virginia, Clemson, Notre Dame, Arizona State, and probably a few more I've forgotten.