I want to become an astrophysicist, but I'm not sure where to start

[CJ2015]

Hey everyone, my name's Christian. I'm currently enlisted into the United States Marine Corps and will be finishing my enlistment in 2015, where I'm going to finally start college. I'm going to be 24 when I start my studies (a little unfortunate, but I believe I chose the best road for myself.)

 

Anyway! I've limited myself the past few years in just focusing on my field of work. I'm a radar technician and it's what I've really grown to like, but it just isn't enough. I've always been fascinated with the stars and learning everything I could on my own time about it all. My high school was pretty small and our science department was pretty lacking, so I didn't even attempt to pursue anything there (big mistake.) What are some great starting resources to really teach myself the fundamentals for astrophysics? I'm a bit rusty on my math, which never went much farther than Advanced Functions in high school. I'm pretty savvy on electronics mathmematics, but I'm not entirely sure how far that really goes...

 

I really appreciate you all taking your time to read this. Also, what are some great university options? I've been considering North Carolina State University since it's close to home and all, but at the same time I don't mind traveling somewhere else (if I can get accepted) to learn. Thank you so much again for your time and suggestions.

[IM Egdall]

Maybe start with a community college and take some courses in remedial math and introductory physics to get you started. Then try to get into a 4-year college or university and major in physics. From there, you would do graduate work in astrophysics.

 

And read, read, read everything you can get your hands on related to astrophysics. There are lots of books, web articles, and web videos on the topic. Try reading popular science books on the subject. This should give you an understanding of the basic concepts and terminology in the field.

 

If you Google "cosmology" and "astrophysics" and "astronomy" etc, you'll find a great many sources from which you can learn. Be sure to look for sources which are from people from reputable universities, so you know what they are saying is legit. You can also join Twitter and go to Tweetchat and #cosmology, where you'll see a number of links on recent discoveries in the field.

 

One thing I have learned which I wish I was told when I was young is that persistence is generally even more important than talent.

 

I wish you the best of luck!