>>11672345The only advantage I can see the physics major to have is maybe a more advanced math knowledge, which isn't necessarily useful when applied to engineering. That being said, I'm sure if you take a physics major who's been studying, say, subatomic physics or relativity he would have no clue about topics like strenght of materials or robotics. Of course he could learn about them, probably easily, but the same could be said of the engineer with physics topics.
As for the better understanding part, again maybe the physicist would have a better grasp on some mathematical proofs or advanced formalism, but that's not the same as understanding a phenomenon. Knowing about subatomic particles doesn't make electronics that much easier the same way as cosmology doesn't make you an expert in building and launching a satellite.
I come from an engineering school which puts a great focus on theory: in my experience, whenever some mathematical or physical concept was needed to better understand a subject, they would teach it to us. The downside of this is that we had basically no practical knowledge and I had to gain it on the field. That's how imagine it would be for a physicist to tackle engineering problems: you have the skills to learn it quickly and in depth, but your previous knowledge might not be too helpful.
In the end it's all a matter of forma mentis and experience. I think that a good engineer who knows his physics well and a good physicist who also dabbles with experiments and hands on approach are pretty much equivalent. A mediocre physicist would have no idea where to start if he had to work with an engineer, and vice versa.
