MSc Physics

The MSc Physics at King’s is built around real research experience. From advanced laboratories to active research groups, you’re immersed in an environment where you learn by doing — whether that means working with nanofabrication tools, running simulations, or contributing to live research projects. This hands-on approach helps you develop the practical confidence and technical depth that employers and PhD supervisors look for.

And this becomes very real through the facilities and opportunities available to you, such as:

• Access to specialist research labs: You’ll use the Physics Research Facility and the Strand Research Facility, which includes cleanrooms for thin-film fabrication and high-precision equipment like Scanning Electron Microscopes and Atomic Force Microscopes.

• Materials and nanotechnology tools: If you’re interested in experimental or condensed-matter physics, you can work with deposition systems, fabrication tools, and characterisation microscopes used in nanomaterials research.

• Active research groups: You join a department with strong teams in areas such as theoretical physics, photonics, condensed matter, cosmology, and biological physics — giving you the chance to collaborate on genuine research problems.

• Computational and theoretical support: For simulation-based or theory-focused pathways, you have access to computational physics groups and modelling tools used in quantum, condensed-matter, and photonics research.

• Interdisciplinary networks: King’s collaborates with major research centres across London, giving you exposure to wider scientific communities and projects that connect physics with materials science, engineering, and life sciences.

• Extensive library resources: You’ll also use King’s large library network, offering access to major physics journals, research databases, and specialist collections that support your project work.

Graduates from the MSc Physics at King’s typically move into careers that value strong analytical thinking and scientific problem-solving. Many step into roles such as data scientist, research scientist, quantitative analyst or risk analyst, while others find opportunities in technology, engineering, finance or applied research. The degree is versatile, so you’ll have options whether you’re aiming for industry or planning to stay in the research world.

King’s supports your career journey in ways that genuinely make a difference:

• Dedicated career support: The King’s Careers Service provides tailored guidance, employer events, skills workshops and one-to-one coaching to help you present your physics training confidently to employers.

• Positive employment outcomes: A large proportion of physics graduates from King’s move into highly skilled roles shortly after finishing, with strong early-career salary ranges that grow as you build experience.

• Access to diverse sectors: Alumni go into industries such as technology, finance, aerospace, medicine, research and consulting — reflecting how adaptable and in demand a physics background is.

• Long-term credibility: Earning a master’s from a globally respected university gives you a qualification that continues to hold value throughout your career.

• Flexible pathways: Some graduates enter industry straight away, while many continue onto research roles or doctoral programmes.

Further Academic Progression:

After this MSc, you’ll be in an excellent position to apply for PhD programmes in physics or closely related fields — either at King’s or at other leading universities. This route can lead to careers in academic research, scientific innovation, advanced R&D, or interdisciplinary fields that blend physics with data science, engineering or computational modelling.