<p>My career path:3-year Bachelor's degree in "Physics with Astrophysics"; PhD in X-ray astronomy; 5-years as a postdoctoral research assistant (two separate posts); got a lectureship at a UK university doing teaching and research in Physics and Astrophysics.</p>

<p>This is reasonably typical. These days, the content of the first degree is not so important - Physics, Astrophysics, Applied Maths all would be ok. "Astronomy" would put you at a disadvantage, since the implication is a non-physical, observational approach; but you would have to look at the course content.</p>

<p>A masters degree or 4-year first degree is usually necessary to get onto PhD programmes in the best places (this has changed since my day). Doing your PhD quickly and writing several publications is usually necessary to proceed any further.</p>

<p>The normal next step is to get a postdoctoral position; preferably somewhere other than your PhD institute. Then after 2-3 years of producing more research papers (2-3 per year), you could try for personal research fellowships. If you can get one of these, or perhaps a second/third postdoc position, and your research is going well and is productive, then there is a few year window in which to get into a tenured or tenure-track position. Getting some teaching experience at this stage is probably important.</p>

<p>For someone on a "normal" career path, it would be unusual to get a University position before the age of 30 (i.e. 8-9 years after your first degree). The large majority of people with a PhD in Astrophysics do not end up doing that for a living.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-03-03T04:26:42.333Z
Today to even get into PhD, one need to break through all crony practices existing in astronomy. Getting PhD is unrealistic. "Good old days", when you would only need a university diploma plus take some oral examinations, are gone.
sanaris
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-05-27T06:49:48.560Z
2016-05-27T06:49:48.560Z
ProfRob
<p>What you need would be at least the following:</p>

<ul>
<li><strong>Physics</strong>: astronomy is physics in the end, and you'll need strong basis in physics;</li>
<li><strong>Math</strong>: as for any good education in physics, you'll need a reasonable amount of math to be able to become an astronomer;</li>
<li><strong>Programming</strong>: it's almost impossible nowadays to get away from it. Being an astronomer today implies lots of data processing (to reduce the data, to interpret it etc.), and it involves a lot of coding.</li>
</ul>

<p>And, as far as I know, in lots of countries/universities, you can find at least few astronomy &amp; astrophysics courses. In some countries, you can even find dedicated master degrees.</p>

<p>With all of that, you'll be ready to start a PhD in astronomy to become a professional astronomer.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-27T04:07:20.717Z
I have heard claims that having a masters degree is not sufficient to be accepted as a "real" astronomer. If your goal is to get a job as an astronomer, I would plan on and expect that a PhD will be necessary.
Donald.McLean
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-27T06:42:39.150Z
For planetary science, maybe geophysics and geology is an alternative? And since astrobiology has become so popular maybe even biology?
LocalFluff
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-27T09:33:27.800Z
@LocalFluff Depends. If you wanna go Astronomy - you observe and process data. Ofc physics to interpret the data is needed. If you go Astrophysics then again it depends. Planetary sciences would be useful for exoplanets, but if you're interested in cosmology/galaxies/cluster dynamics etc. you won't need that.
AtmosphericPrisonEscape
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-27T15:37:45.547Z
@Donald.McLean sure, but if you want to start a PhD in astronomy and astrophysics, you'll need a master degree in physics/astrophysics.
MBR
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-27T15:41:36.620Z
@LocalFluff Indeed, if you want to go in planetary science, geophysics/geology could be useful (I know a bunch of people with geophysical background who did a PhD in planetary science). As for exobiology, perhaps it is popular in the media, but in practice I know very few people in labs (not to say nobody) working in this area... Some background in biology could be nice, but I would not advise a PhD candidate to focus too much on biology.
MBR
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-27T15:45:37.533Z
@MBR - Yes, to get a PhD, you first need the masters, but the OP is asking what he needs to work as an astronomer. Working as an astronomer requires a PhD, and so the answer should make that crucial point quite clear.
Donald.McLean
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-27T15:49:44.323Z
@Donald.McLean fair enough, I added a comment in the end of my answer.
MBR
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-27T16:07:15.600Z
@MBR Astrobiologists do suffer from a lack of data... And might very likely continue to do so for as long as humans dream of learning about it. This in a time when the rest of astronomy AFAIK prepares to "suffer" from Big Data and focuses on appropriate software development skills. I'd recommend backing up a career in astrobiology with an interest in writing scifi to make a living. Or taxi driving.
LocalFluff
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-10-16T09:02:23.790Z
For French speaking people, there's also a bunch of Masters: at [Paris Observatory](http://master.obspm.fr/), at [Strasbourg Observatory](http://astro.unistra.fr/enseignement/master-specialite-astrophysique/), in [University of Grenoble](http://ipag.osug.fr/MasterA2P/A2P/Accueil.html), at [Toulouse Observatory](http://ezomp2.omp.obs-mip.fr/asep/) etc.
MBR
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-10-16T08:42:58.783Z
2014-05-27T15:49:21.880Z
2014-05-27T15:49:21.880Z
MBR
<p>I realize there are very few to none universities that offer direct specialization of astronomy. If I aspired to be make astronomy my career choice, I'd likely have to pick something like physics and specialize later - or something similar - but that's just my hunch, and I'd prefer to know for sure.</p>

<p>What educational and professional paths optimize one's education and skill set for the occupation of astronomer? How do I become one?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-10-16T07:07:16.653Z
you should have tried some job requirements site for this. Instead of this one..you might have found a better answer...as you might get some incorrect info here..:) Good luck
Afzaal Ahmad Zeeshan
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-10-16T07:31:14.457Z
@AfzaalAhmadZeeshan: Job requirements sites will list necessary skills, but not the necessary paths to obtain them. They also often contain skillsets thought up by HR and recruitment agencies as opposed to actually required for given job. I definitely prefer to hear that from proverbial horse's mouth.
SF.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2013-10-16T12:28:02.903Z
To know how you can achieve a skill, you must get a guideline from one who have those skills :)
Afzaal Ahmad Zeeshan
<observational-astronomy>
What study profiles could land me the job of astronomer?
SF.
# What study profiles could land me the job of astronomer?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2013-10-16)

I realize there are very few to none universities that offer direct specialization of astronomy. If I aspired to be make astronomy my career choice, I'd likely have to pick something like physics and specialize later - or something similar - but that's just my hunch, and I'd prefer to know for sure.

What educational and professional paths optimize one's education and skill set for the occupation of astronomer? How do I become one?

**Tags:** observational-astronomy

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: you should have tried some job requirements site for this. Instead of this one..you might have found a better answer...as you might get some incorrect info here..:) Good luck  
> **username_0**: @username_1: Job requirements sites will list necessary skills, but not the necessary paths to obtain them. They also often contain skillsets thought up by HR and recruitment agencies as opposed to actually required for given job. I definitely prefer to hear that from proverbial horse's mouth.  
> **username_1**: To know how you can achieve a skill, you must get a guideline from one who have those skills :)  

---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_4 on 2013-10-16. Score: 11 | Accepted answer

What you need would be at least the following:

* **Physics**: astronomy is physics in the end, and you'll need strong basis in physics;
* **Math**: as for any good education in physics, you'll need a reasonable amount of math to be able to become an astronomer;
* **Programming**: it's almost impossible nowadays to get away from it. Being an astronomer today implies lots of data processing (to reduce the data, to interpret it etc.), and it involves a lot of coding.

And, as far as I know, in lots of countries/universities, you can find at least few astronomy & astrophysics courses. In some countries, you can even find dedicated master degrees.

With all of that, you'll be ready to start a PhD in astronomy to become a professional astronomer.

> **Comments:**
> **username_4**: For French speaking people, there's also a bunch of Masters: at [Paris Observatory](http://master.obspm.fr/), at [Strasbourg Observatory](http://astro.unistra.fr/enseignement/master-specialite-astrophysique/), in [University of Grenoble](http://ipag.osug.fr/MasterA2P/A2P/Accueil.html), at [Toulouse Observatory](http://ezomp2.omp.obs-mip.fr/asep/) etc.  
> **username_5**: I have heard claims that having a masters degree is not sufficient to be accepted as a "real" astronomer. If your goal is to get a job as an astronomer, I would plan on and expect that a PhD will be necessary.  
> **username_6**: For planetary science, maybe geophysics and geology is an alternative? And since astrobiology has become so popular maybe even biology?  
> **username_7**: @username_6 Depends. If you wanna go Astronomy - you observe and process data. Ofc physics to interpret the data is needed. If you go Astrophysics then again it depends. Planetary sciences would be useful for exoplanets, but if you're interested in cosmology/galaxies/cluster dynamics etc. you won't need that.  
> **username_4**: @username_5 sure, but if you want to start a PhD in astronomy and astrophysics, you'll need a master degree in physics/astrophysics.  
> **username_4**: @username_6 Indeed, if you want to go in planetary science, geophysics/geology could be useful (I know a bunch of people with geophysical background who did a PhD in planetary science). As for exobiology, perhaps it is popular in the media, but in practice I know very few people in labs (not to say nobody) working in this area... Some background in biology could be nice, but I would not advise a PhD candidate to focus too much on biology.  
> **username_5**: @username_4 - Yes, to get a PhD, you first need the masters, but the OP is asking what he needs to work as an astronomer. Working as an astronomer requires a PhD, and so the answer should make that crucial point quite clear.  
> **username_4**: @username_5 fair enough, I added a comment in the end of my answer.  
> **username_6**: @username_4 Astrobiologists do suffer from a lack of data... And might very likely continue to do so for as long as humans dream of learning about it. This in a time when the rest of astronomy AFAIK prepares to "suffer" from Big Data and focuses on appropriate software development skills. I'd recommend backing up a career in astrobiology with an interest in writing scifi to make a living. Or taxi driving.  

---

### Answer by username_2 on 2016-05-27. Score: 4

My career path:3-year Bachelor's degree in "Physics with Astrophysics"; PhD in X-ray astronomy; 5-years as a postdoctoral research assistant (two separate posts); got a lectureship at a UK university doing teaching and research in Physics and Astrophysics.

This is reasonably typical. These days, the content of the first degree is not so important - Physics, Astrophysics, Applied Maths all would be ok. "Astronomy" would put you at a disadvantage, since the implication is a non-physical, observational approach; but you would have to look at the course content.

A masters degree or 4-year first degree is usually necessary to get onto PhD programmes in the best places (this has changed since my day). Doing your PhD quickly and writing several publications is usually necessary to proceed any further.

The normal next step is to get a postdoctoral position; preferably somewhere other than your PhD institute. Then after 2-3 years of producing more research papers (2-3 per year), you could try for personal research fellowships. If you can get one of these, or perhaps a second/third postdoc position, and your research is going well and is productive, then there is a few year window in which to get into a tenured or tenure-track position. Getting some teaching experience at this stage is probably important.

For someone on a "normal" career path, it would be unusual to get a University position before the age of 30 (i.e. 8-9 years after your first degree). The large majority of people with a PhD in Astrophysics do not end up doing that for a living.

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: Today to even get into PhD, one need to break through all crony practices existing in astronomy. Getting PhD is unrealistic. "Good old days", when you would only need a university diploma plus take some oral examinations, are gone.  

---

