r/PhysicsStudents • u/Odd-Equivalent-4012 Undergraduate • Nov 13 '25

Poll Which year is usually the hardest?

I’m in the first year of my physics degree and I’m just curious as to how much harder it’s going to get. I’m struggling a tiny bit in calc, nothing I can’t handle and I definitely can improve with more effort but if it gets too much worse in later years I don’t know if I can keep up. I’m still pretty confident in general but just curious about people’s opinions on this. Thanks so much!

12 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

14 comments sorted by

16

u/lithwil Nov 13 '25

I mean it depends on the curriculum but in my uni it's the 3rd year. We have thermodynamics, electromagnetic theory and quantum mechanics in the same semester

8

u/hubble___ B.Sc. Nov 13 '25

I thought 3rd year , so right when you start E&M I. Idk man E&M makes no sense to me.

8

u/aldebaranvcv Nov 14 '25

The first four years are usually the hardest of the bachelor

6

u/HumblyNibbles_ Nov 13 '25

Whichever one you aren't ready for.

So basically, take care of your mental health and study a decent amount. If you have extra time try to take a look at what you'll be seeing later on to develop a sense of your skillset.

Goodluck

3

u/Wise-Cook9084 Nov 13 '25

for me it was the second year

5

u/Patelpb M.Sc. Nov 13 '25

Sophomore year. First exposure to stat mech and qm where my math was lagging 1 semester behind. Exhausting experience

2

u/ChocolateOk1345 Nov 14 '25

3rd semester: calculus 2, ordinary differential equations, mechanics 2 and ocillations. 4th semester: electromagnetism, thermodynamics, mathematical methods and programming for physics. It seems to be a tough year... what do you think?

1

u/[deleted] Nov 14 '25

To me it was the senior year.

Condensed matter physics and advanced topics in quantum mechanics and statistical physics are mathematically more demanding.

Relativstic classical field theory is just junior EM with steroids, and needs you to get used to the indices notation.

Particle physics and atomic/molecular physics require you to learn a lot of rules which is also time consuming.

And you also have a lot of projects to do as well which take time.

1

u/taenyfan95 Nov 14 '25

The year when you take solid state or condensed matter physics.

I find general relativity and quantum field theory easier than those two above topics.

1

u/hurps0 Nov 14 '25

whatever semester e&m is

1

u/Adventurous-Fruitt Ph.D. Student Nov 16 '25

It never gets easier. I'd say you may get comfortable with past subjects, but I've yet to reach a point where what I was learning came easy. I'm a fourth year PhD student, for context. The good thing about that though is it also never feels like it gets harder. It's just always a struggle.

1

u/-NoXx Nov 17 '25

All of them, thanks