Undergraduate Handbook

Majors in Physics are required to complete the following courses:

Physics 201 Honors Problem Solving I and 204 Honors Problem Solving II are recommended for Physics majors.

Choose from

Note that Physics 217 does not fulfill the requirement of an upper level course.

Choose from: 

Majors are required to complete a minimum of 21 units of advanced courses (300-level or higher) in Physics, excluding Physics 341, Physics 342, Physics 441, Physics 442, Physics 499 and Physics 500. These 21 units include the 300-level and higher courses listed above; complete course offerings are found here. Advanced courses must all be letter-graded and completed with at least a C-.

• Math 308 Mathematics for the Physical Sciences or ESE 318 Engineering Mathematics A (Should precede Physics 421.)
• Math 309 Matrix Algebra (Should precede Physics 471)
• Physics 501/Math 501 and Physics 502/Math 502 are also recommended. 

Majors must select 3 of the following courses to satisfy the science-breadth requirement.  One of the three courses must be Chem 111A, Chem 112A, Chem 401 or Chem 402. 

One of the following:

And one of the following:

Majors in astrophysics are required to complete the following courses:

Physics 201 Honors Problem Solving I and 204 Honors Problem Solving II are recommended for astrophysics majors.

Choose from:

Choose from 

Advanced courses (300-level and above) must all be letter-graded and completed with at least a C-. In addition to the above requirements, students who are earning the astrophysics major are required to have three advanced electives from the following courses: 

Plus one additional course from the preceding five courses or one of the following courses: 

 Majors must select one of the following courses to satisfy the science-breadth requirement.   

Units Required: 17

Required Courses

Elective Courses

At least one course at the 300 level or above (with the exception of Physics 303, Physics 304, Physics 341, Physics 342, Physics 441, Physics 442, Physics 499 and Physics 500) with a grade of C- or better. 

Units Required: 20

Required Courses:

Two courses from the following:

Units Required: 17

Required Courses

Elective Courses:

Two of the following courses:

One of the following laboratory courses:

First Year Fall

Calculus I
Chemistry 105
CSE 131 or Chem 151
Writing 1 (Fall or Spring)
Electives

First Year Spring

Mathematical Methods for Physics (MMP) *proposed new course
Calculus II
CSE 247
Writing 1 (Fall or Spring)
Electives

Second Year Fall

Focused Physics I
Physics I Lab
Calculus III
Electives

Second Year Spring

Math 217 Differential Equations
Focused Physics II
Physics II Lab
Electives

Third Year Fall

Physics 217
Upper Level Physics Elective or Lab

Majors are required to complete a minimum of 21 units of advanced courses (300-level or higher), excluding Physics 341, Physics 342, Physics 441, Physics 442, Physics 499 and Physics 500.

Astrophysics majors need to take 312 in the fall of the 3rd yr, and 3 additional astronomy courses as detailed above.

Third Year Spring

Physics 411 - Mechanics
Upper Level Physics Elective or Lab

Fourth Year Fall

Physics 421 - Electricity & Magnetism I
Upper Level Physics Elective or Lab

Fourth Year Spring

Physics 322
Upper Level Lab

This schedule assumes that students begin Physics in their first year. However, the Physics major can still be completed even if Introductory Physics isn’t taken until the sophomore year. Students should see the suggested track for students with no prior calculus for an example of how this can be done. 

First Year Fall

Focused Physics I
Physics I Lab
Calculus II
CSE 131 or Chemistry 105 (with or without Chem 151) or other elective
Writing 1 (Fall or Spring) or Elective

First Year Spring

Focused Physics II
Physics II Lab
Calculus III
CSE 131, CSE 247 or other elective
Writing I (Fall or Spring) or Elective

Second Year Fall

Physics 217
Upper Level Physics Lab
Math 217
Electives

Astrophysics majors would take 312 in place of either the elective or the upper level lab.

Second Year Spring

Physics 318
Physics 411
Math 308 or ESE 318
Electives

Majors are required to complete a minimum of 21 units of advanced courses (300-level or higher), excluding Physics 341, Physics 342, Physics 441, Physics 442, Physics 499 and Physics 500. 

Astrophysics majors need to take 3 additional astronomy courses as detailed above.

Third Year Fall

Physics 421
Upper level Physics elective or Lab 

Third Year Spring

Physics 322
Upper level Physics elective or lab

Fourth Year Fall

Upper level Physics elective or Lab 

Fourth Year Spring

Upper level Physics elective or Lab 

Advanced courses are available to prepare you for graduate school. A possible program includes Phys 463 & 471 in the Fall of the 3rd year and 422 in the Spring of the 3rd year.

Some courses such as Physics 472 (Introduction to Solid State Physics) and Physics 474 (Introduction to Nuclear & Particle Physics) have Physics 471 as a prerequisite, and are not necessarily offered every year. Physics 501/502 (Methods of Theoretical Physics I/II) and many other graduate level courses are available. Consult your major advisor for advice on courses that will best prepare you for your future studies.

Students interested in graduate school are strongly advised to do an undergraduate research project (see Research Projects for Undergraduates). This will help you to confirm that you like doing research. Furthermore, your research advisor will be able to write you a strong recommendation letter after working with you on a research project . Your undergraduate research advisor, faculty advisor or course instructor will be happy to write letters of recommendation for graduate programs, scholarship opportunities, and fellowships. They will also provide advice on which graduate programs in physics or related subjects will provide the best match with a student's interests. Most graduate programs in the sciences provide tuition remission and a living stipend in return for work as a teaching assistant or research assistant.

Students can fulfill pre-medicine requirements while pursuing a major in Physics. Exposure to hands-on applications of physics techniques in the laboratory can be a great advantage for research-oriented students interested in medical school. 

The program listed below is one possibility for completing the major and assumes that the incoming student takes Introductory Physics during their first year, along with either Biology (Option 1) or General Chemistry (Option 2) during the first year, and delaying the other until the second year. However, the Physics major can still be completed even if Introductory Physics isn’t taken until the sophomore year. Students should see the suggested track for students with no prior calculus for an example of how this can be done. 

FIRST YEAR FALL

Focused Physics I
Physics I Lab
Calculus II
Option 1: CSE 131 or Option 2: Chem 105 and Chem 151 
Writing 1 (Fall or Spring) or other elective

FIRST YEAR SPRING

Focused Physics II
Physics II Lab
Calculus III
Option 1: Bio 2960 or Option 2: Chem 106 and Chem 152 
Writing 1 (Fall or Spring) or other elective

SECOND YEAR FALL

Physics 217
Math 217
Option 1: Bio 2970 and Chem 105 and Chem 151 or Option 2: Chemistry 261
Electives

SECOND YEAR SPRING

Physics 318 or 411
Option 1: Chem 106 and Chem 152 or Option 2: Chemistry 262
Electives

THIRD YEAR FALL

Physics 360
Physics 421 or Upper level Physics elective
Electives

THIRD YEAR SPRING

Physics 354
Physics 411 or Upper level Physics elective
Electives

FOURTH YEAR FALL

Physics 421 or Upper level Physics elective

FOURTH YEAR SPRING

Physics 322

Students who are not planning to continue to a graduate program in physics are encouraged to take additional laboratory courses.

Students who are seeking employment directly from college will find that technical and non-technical positions in many fields are available to physics majors, including:

Internships and entry-level positions with major corporations

Computer-related jobs including programming, system administration, and hardware and software maintenance

Laboratory jobs in industry, hospitals, and universities

Teaching positions in public and private schools; your major advisor can provide advice on teacher certification

The American Institute of Physics provides useful information in its publications and reports, as well as career resources on its web site. The College of Arts and Sciences,through its Career Center, also provides information, support and advice.

Introductory labs complement Physics 191/192 and 211/212. The labs comprise individual experiments describing general physics principles covering a range of topics including mechanics, light and optics, and electricity. Many of the experiments are designed to improve understanding the physics of everyday life, such as bicycles, baseball, and speakers.

The lab sessions are monitored by graduate students and staff. Typically the instructor briefs the students on the details of the experiment for the day's session and then breaks the group up into teams, assisting as necessary.

The optics course provides the student with an introduction to ray and wave optics. Given the explosion of interest in optics driven by light-wave (fiber  optic) communication, the optics laboratory is an important course. 

The electronics laboratory aims to make the student capable of using electronic circuitry and instruments.

In the physical measurements laboratory the student chooses from relatively sophisticated experiments, including: nuclear magnetic resonance, diode laser spectroscopy, positronium decay, superconductivity and other low temperature phenomena, ultrasonics, x-ray scattering, and scanning tunnel microscopy. The experiments in this course are pursued in greater depth than in the other laboratory courses, giving the student some of the feel of actual research.

The biophysics laboratory course consists of tabletop experiments in biological physics designed to introduce the student to the concepts, methods, and biological model systems in biophysics.

The radiochemistry lab explores the role of nuclear physics in scientific and biological applications.

Students are encouraged to work toward Latin Honors (cum laude, magna cum laude, summa cum laude). To qualify, students must meet the academic requirements of the college and successfully complete a suitable project under the supervision of a faculty member in the department. The project, whether experimental or theoretical, should demonstrate the student's capacity for independent work. Honors candidates must apply to the Undergraduate Studies Committee no later than the first day of classes of their senior year. The application should include a description of the proposed project, co-signed by the supervising professor. A written report of the completed work must be submitted to the committee by a March deadline. By enrolling in Physics 499, students may earn up to 6 units of credit for the honors project. 

The Department of Physics also offers physics majors the possibility to earn departmental distinctions. These distinctions require the same GPA cutoff as Latin Honors but are calculated exclusively from the grades in physics courses (courses with the prefix L31). Three levels of distinction are offered: (1) highest distinction, (2) high distinction, and (3) distinction. The highest and high distinctions require at least one semester of undergraduate research and a senior thesis describing the results; these distinctions are limited to the top 15 percent (highest distinction) and top 15-50 percent (high distinction) of the physics majors in their senior year ranked by their GPA in the physics courses. Students meeting the GPA cutoff but who do not undertake undergraduate research and a senior thesis may only receive the third level of distinction. Senior Honors Thesis Information