It varies from person to person however on average I would say so.

If you haven’t taken it–think of it like a workout for your brain. It feels like you just went for a jog or lifted weights. It’s not insurmountable but sometimes it feels like it.

Sometimes the best thing to do is take a break, then revisit the material with help from a classmate, teacher or a physics tutor. A close second would be AP Calculus AB or BC but a lot of those students end up never taking physics so it’s an apples to oranges comparison.

We hire our physics tutors from the University of Washington–almost all of them physics majors. But that’s not directly related to vetting.

How do I vet them? Interview, transcripts, two references, and review of experience working w/ kids and tutoring or teaching. Physics tutors are no doubt the most difficult to find. Perhaps this is because it may not seem intuitive at first. Electrons, magnetism, electricity and fields can’t readily be seen the same way forces, mass and acceleration can be seen.

Don’t let that stop you. There is tons of active research because so much is still not understood and its value is immense. Think of all the advanced medical imaging for example, or interventional radiology. Our understanding quantum mechanics and sub-atomic particles save lives every day.