- GETTING A PHYSICS DEGREE
Most students get a Bachelor of Science (BS) in physics. It is possible to get a Bachelor of Arts (BA), however. Talk to a faculty member or to the registrar, or check out the Catalog for more information.
The major for a BS includes a minimum of 32 credit hours. Required courses account for 25 of those 32 credit hours. Most students headed for graduate school end up taking closer to 40 credit hours. Students heading into secondary education or industry often take closer to the minimum.
Many students are interested in double majoring with engineering, chemistry, or meteorology. Please contact us to find out more.
Below is a table showing all the courses offered and where they might fit into a typical schedule. Explanatory notes are given at the end.
Course Title Semester Semester Required Suggested hours Elective PHYS-109 Physics: Mechanics - Statics
E/P 3 Elective PHYS-141 Physics: Mechanics and Heat (or PHYS-151)
1 3 Required PHYS-141L Experimental Physics I (Laboratory)
1 1 Required PHYS-142 Physics: Electricity, Magnetism and Waves (or PHYS-152)
2 3 Required PHYS-142L Experimental Physics II (Laboratory)
2 1 Required PHYS-151 Physics: Mechanics and Heat - Honors
1 3 (Required) PHYS-152 Physics: Electricity, Magnetism and Waves - Honors
2 3 (Required) PHYS-215 Mechanics of Materials
E/P 3 Elective PHYS-243 Physics: Atoms, Nuclei, and the Solid State
3 3 Required PHYS-245 Experimental Physics III (Laboratory)
4 1 Required PHYS-250 Analytical Mechanics
4 3 Required PHYS-252 Materials Science
3 1 Elective PHYS-281 Electricity and Electronics
3 3 Required PHYS-310 Data Reduction and Error Analysis
4 1 Required PHYS-320 Microprocessor Applications
E/P 4 Elective PHYS-333 Mechanical Measurements Laboratory
E/P 4 Elective PHYS-342 Electronics
E/P 4 Elective PHYS-345 Experimental Physics IV (Laboratory)
5 1 Required PHYS-360 Thermal Physics (Spring, odd years)
6 or 8 3 Elective PHYS-371 Electromagnetic Fields
5 3 Required PHYS-372 Electromagnetic Waves (Spring, odd years)
6 or 8 3 Elective PHYS-381 Advanced Mechanics (Fall, even years)
5 or 7 3 Elective PHYS-421 Quantum Mechanics I (Fall, odd years)
5 or 7 3 Elective PHYS-422 Quantum Mechanics II (Spring, even years)
6 or 8 3 Elective PHYS-430 Nuclear and Particle Physics (Spring, even years)
6 or 8 3 Elective PHYS-430L Nuclear and Particle Physics (Laboratory) (Spring, even years)
6 or 8 1 Elective PHYS-440 Condensed Matter Physics (Spring, odd years)
6 or 8 3 Elective PHYS-445 Experimental Physics V (Senior Research in Physics)
7 and 8 2 Required PHYS-492 Research and Reading in Physics
-- 1-3 Elective PHYS-499 Physics Colloquium
All 0 Required ASTR-101 Astronomy
1 3 Elective ASTR-221 Observational Astronomy (Spring, odd years)
2 or 4 1 Elective ASTR-252 Astrophysics (Spring, even years)
4 or 6 3 Elective ASTR-445 Experimental Astronomy (Senior Research in Astronomy)
7 and 8 2 Elective - You may view University Catalog descriptions of these courses. (2008 Catalog. pdf file. Physics and Astronomy begins on page 157).
- There are a total of 25 s.h. (out of a minimum of 32 s.h.) of required courses in the physics major.
- The courses which are included in, and count toward the physics major program are shown in the table. The Honors courses may be substituted for their equivalent:151 for (141) and 152 for (142) if the student meets the entrance requirements
- Courses whose "Suggested Semester" reads "5 or 7", or "6 or 8", etc., imply that the course is taught in alternate years. Note the semester in which the course is normally taught and select the correct semester for your program.
- Courses whose "Suggested Semester" reads E/P implies that these are courses cross listed with the College of Engineering.
- Specific courses of study are worked out with your department faculty academic advisor each semester.