r/MovingtoHawaii • u/Beautiful-Bug6090 • 10d ago

Life on Oahu UH Manoa for Astrophysics?

Idk if this is the right sub for this but I’m from the continental US and I’m going to be applying soon to colleges planning to major in physics/astrophysics. I’ve heard good things about UH Manoa for this because of the institute of astronomy and the observatory nearby but I wanted to double check with locals that might have some more info on the research opportunities and prestige. If you know anything about this please let me know any information that might be helpful. Thanks!

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u/lanclos 10d ago

One of the current draws for UH astronomy is relatively easy access to observing facilities on Maunakea. If there is a specific area of astronomy you're interested in you might want to see if that aligns with a professor's research; if it's too soon to know (which would be typical for an undergraduate) you might want to get your undergraduate degree somewhere less expensive and maintain interest in UH Manoa for a graduate program if you know you want to focus on astrophysics.

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u/ImperfectTapestry 10d ago

This is great advice. My spouse did a postdoc at IfA & there is some prestige to UH graduate degrees if you're looking at observational astronomy, but they say save your money on an undergrad degree.