“Are Physicists Antisocial Nerds?”: A Personal Reflection on University Stereotypes

 

One of my earliest memories of wanting to study physics was being told that it “was just for boys”, something too many girls hear growing up. Whilst applying for university it was the statistics hidden in the corners of every course webpage, “20% of students are female!”, that echoed the same phrase: physics was just for boys. But it was a subject I loved and found fascinating, so I made the leap and applied to Warwick. These fears didn’t alleviate over the summer after A-levels though, and before my first course meet-up in freshers week I remember being terrified I’d be the only girl there, unable to make any friends on my course. Looking back now it feels rather silly, with the experiences and friends I have going into my third year, but for anyone in that position now, I get it. Most ‘Women in STEM’ do. And I promise you, it all works out.

1. “Physics is just for boys”

Physics is a very male-dominated area,. At Warwick in particular, across all Physics courses offered, only around a fifth of us are women. This decreases even further for Maths and Physics (my course!). So yes, sitting in a lecture hall, looking around, and seeing an ocean of teenage boys can be a bit daunting. But does that mean women can’t study physics? The amount of initiatives and scholarships available to women and non-binary students across the country demonstrates that this is completely untrue. Our very own Physics society has a dedicated Women’s Officer, regularly running events to network, get academic help, or just socialise with other girls on the courses. So while the stats might demonstrate there’s not a great split, that doesn’t mean there aren’t opportunities aplenty.

2. “Physics students don’t have a social life”

While it’s true that physics students may not go out clubbing as often as your average humanities student, that’s largely down to the sheer amount of work we get set each week, with contact hours, labs, assignments, and quizzes. Even then, the physics society organises weekly social events, and in my first year I went out on around two nights a week (sometimes even with other physics students). It varies from person to person and what you prioritise, but it is possible to socialise as a physics student, with other physics students. I’ve met people on my course in every area of the University, in other societies and sports clubs, as well as SU events, which shows at least some of them are socialising!

3. “Physics students are unsporty and uncoordinated”

This probably stems from overused ‘nerd’ and ‘jock’ tropes we commonly see in the media, but in my experience it’s not at all accurate. I personally represent Warwick in two sports, Mixed Netball and Lacrosse, which I’ve managed to juggle with the heavy workload over the past two years. Returning to the Physics society gives more evidence to the contrary, boasting a dedicated Badminton and 11-a-side Football team, filled with physicists who not only compete, but regularly top the league! A lot of our best athletes at Warwick study Physics, including several scholars and numerous sports club exec. While American TV might have us believe that no one can be smart and sporty, a university like Warwick disproves that easily.

4. “Physics is really, really hard”

This might be a controversial one to try and argue against, but it’s one I hear a lot. Whenever I mention that I study Maths and Physics people look at me like I’m insane, but I genuinely believe anyone with a passion for it can study the subject. There are two key areas that people find tricky: the mathematics used and the unusual concepts introduced. “Maths is the language of Physics” comes to mind here, and it’s true. All of my modules revolve around a mathematical description of a new, confusing concept. But with a good enough teacher, or a good enough book, new ideas and theories can be understood by anyone with a modicum of interest in the subject, and then the only issue is mathematical ability. Whilst a ‘natural talent’ is certainly beneficial, just practising a range of mathematical skills and getting to grips with the large, often confusing equations puts you in an excellent position to study Physics. As with any subject, it is hard work, but is not fundamentally harder than other disciplines.

 

Though this was only a brief look at some of the stereotypes I often come across, I wanted to present a slightly different viewpoint than most. Physics students, like any other students, can be sporty, or nerdy, or social (or not). So for anyone nervous about starting at Warwick, my biggest piece of advice is just to throw yourself into everything, the degree, the lab work, the sports clubs, the societies, because this is where you’ll meet friends for life, and discover more about yourself too.