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What do I have to do to call myself a physicist?
To be a professional physicist requires study and some sort of academic qualification. Also some form of postdoctoral work would help. However self study could bring yourself to exactly the same point but without the qualification. In this case it would be harder to get your theories accepted.
Some terms such as Dr., M.D.,D.O., Ph.D., MA, MS, MBA, MFA, BA, BS, BFA, BBA, & etc specifically denote a degree.Depending on the qualifications for a job, some employers may require a specific degree. However, in many cases, there is also a place for work experience and on the job training. And, in some cases, there have been suggestions that having a degree without work experience is worse than having work experience without a degree.
A word of caution on this subject: As Ralph Waldo Emerson said – Do not characterize yourself by your profession.
In spite of many rumors to the contrary, I am not now and never have been a “historian of science”– indeed, I am opposed to the definition of any human being by discipline or profession. (footnote) - I am enough of an Emersonian to heed his voice in “The American Scholar,” with the caveat that his use of “man” should be taken as embracing woman: ”Man is not a farmer, or a professor, or an engineer, but he is all. Man is priest, and scholar, and statesman, and producer, and soldier.
Some professions such as Engineering have different levels in which some individuals are licensed, and some are not. If you need a licensed engineer to review your design, then you need to verify the credentials of the person.