Selected Educational Outcomes
The program leading to the Bachelor of Science degree with a major in physics is designed to prepare students to enter graduate programs in physics or in astronomy, or to embark upon careers in government, industry, or education. Examples of these outcomes include the following:
- students will demonstrate knowledge in the fundamental branches of physics: mechanics, electromagnetism, and quantum mechanics;
- students will demonstrate knowledge in several elective areas within the field of physics, including (but not limited to) thermodynamics, electronics, optics, and computational physics;
- students will apply the techniques of mathematical analysis (algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and calculus) to physical problems;
- students will effectively use computers and calculators for scientific calculation, programming, and word processing.
Examples of Outcome Assessments
Assessment of the education outcomes for the physics major is primarily the responsibility of the departmental Physics Area Committee, comprised of faculty with expertise in physics and cognate disciplines. The Committee assesses the extent to which the program requirements create the desired outcomes by using a variety of techniques. Examples of these assessments include the following:
- All student majors must make oral presentations of their research results to the departmental faculty and submit written copies of their research papers to the departmental office as part of the required Capstone Seminar (PHYS 4501).
- Students must submit a departmental copy of their portfolios of undergraduate coursework, research projects, and professional activity at the end of their last semester of residence.
- At the time of major coursework completion, students must complete an exit questionnaire to determine the students’ perception of achievement of the major’s educational outcomes.
- Periodic surveys of alumni who have completed the physics program will be conducted to evaluate the relevancy of the major program to graduates’ present employment, their perception of success, and their personal satisfaction with the program. The surveys will also solicit suggestions for improvement of the physics major program.
Requirements for the Bachelor of Science Degree with a Major in Physics
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Core Curriculum | 60 | |
| Core Curriculum Areas A-E (See VSU Core Curriculum) | 42 | |
| Physics majors are required to take MATH 1113 in Area A and MATH 2261 in Area D2. They are advised to take PHYS 2211K, PHYS 2212K in Area D2. | ||
| Core Curriculum Area F | ||
| Analytic Geometry and Calculus I (1 hour left over from Area D) | ||
| Analytic Geometry and Calculus II and Analytic Geometry and Calculus III | ||
| Modern Physics | ||
| Principles of Physics I and Principles of Physics II (if not taken in Area D2) | ||
Lab Sciences, if PHYS 2211K, PHYS 2212K are taken in Area D2 | ||
| Senior College Curriculum | 60 | |
| Upper-Level Courses in Physics | ||
| PHYS 3810 | Mathematical Methods of Physics | 3 |
| PHYS 3820 | Computational Physics I | 4 |
| PHYS 4111 & PHYS 4112 | Theoretical Mechanics I and Theoretical Mechanics II | 6 |
| PHYS 4211 & PHYS 4212 | Electromagnetism I and Electromagnetism II | 6 |
| PHYS 4310 | Thermodynamics | 3 |
| PHYS 4411 & PHYS 4412 | Quantum Mechanics I and Quantum Mechanics II | 6 |
| MATH 3340 | Ordinary Differential Equations | 3 |
| or PHYS 3800 | Differential Equations in Physical Systems | |
| Select two courses from the following: | 8 | |
| Electronics | ||
| Optics | ||
| Experimental Physics | ||
| Other Supporting Courses | 6-9 | |
| MATH 2150 | Introduction to Linear Algebra | 3 |
| Language Requirement (Students may choose to take CS 1301 and CS 1302 to satisfy the language requirement. The additional 2 hours from CS 1301 and CS 1302 can count as part of the guided electives) | 3-6 | |
| Guided Electives 1 | 12-15 | |
| Total hours required for the degree | 120 | |
- 1
chosen from: any 3000- or 4000-level CS, ASTR, GEOL, CHEM, BIOL, or PHYS course or MATH 3040, MATH 3600, or any 4000-level MATH course except MATH 4161.
Requirements for the Bachelor of Science Degree with a Major in Physics--Applied Physics Track
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Core Curriculum | 60 | |
| Core Curriculum Areas A-E (See VSU Core Curriculum) | 42 | |
| Physics majors are required to take MATH 1113 in Area A and MATH 2261 in Area D.2. They are advised to take PHYS 2211K and PHYS 2212K in Area D.2. | ||
| Core Curriculum Area F 1 | ||
| PHYS 2700 | Modern Physics | 1 |
| CS 1301 | Principles of Programming I | 4 |
| MATH 2262 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus II | 4 |
| MATH 2263 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus III | 4 |
| MATH 2261 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus I (1 hour left over from Area D) | 4 |
| Select one of the following sequences: | 4 | |
| Principles of Chemistry I and Principles of Chemistry Laboratory I | ||
| Principles of Biology I and Principles of Biology Laboratory I | ||
| Senior College Curriculum | 60 | |
| Required Courses 2 | 33 | |
| CS 1302 | Principles of Programming II | 4 |
| Select one of the following sequences: | 4 | |
| Principles of Chemistry II and Principles of Chemistry Laboratory II | ||
| Principles of Biology II and Principles of Biology Laboratory II | ||
| PHYS 3040 | Electronics | 4 |
| PHYS 3100 | Optics | 4 |
| PHYS 3820 | Computational Physics I | 4 |
| PHYS 4040 | Experimental Physics | 4 |
| PHYS 4111 | Theoretical Mechanics I | 3 |
| PHYS 4211 | Electromagnetism I | 3 |
| PHYS 4411 | Quantum Mechanics I | 3 |
| Supporting Courses and Electives | 27 | |
| MATH Electives: Select two from the following courses: | 6 | |
| Introduction to Linear Algebra | ||
| Set Theory | ||
| Ordinary Differential Equations | ||
| Probability and Statistics | ||
| Linear Algebra | ||
| Mathematical Analysis | ||
| Functions of a Complex Variable | ||
| Topology | ||
| Modern Foreign Language (3 hours may be taken in Area C) | 3-6 | |
| Other Guided Electives | 15-18 | |
| Introductory Genetics | ||
| Ecology and Evolution | ||
| Environmental Science | ||
| Animal Physiology | ||
| Human Physiology | ||
| Dendrology | ||
| Plant Systematics | ||
| Plant Pathology | ||
| Neuroscience | ||
| Introduction to Biogeography | ||
| Morphology of Land Plants | ||
| Human Anatomy | ||
| Theory and Practice of Scanning Electron Microscopy | ||
| Biology Internship | ||
| Directed Study | ||
| Sophomore Seminar | ||
| Quantitative Analysis | ||
| Environmental Chemistry | ||
| Organic Chemistry I | ||
| Organic Chemistry II | ||
| Inorganic Chemistry | ||
| Biochemistry I and Laboratory Techniques in Biochemistry | ||
| Biochemistry II | ||
| Physical Chemistry I | ||
| Physical Chemistry II | ||
| Seminar | ||
| Instrumental Analysis | ||
| Physical Organic Chemistry | ||
| Computational Chemistry | ||
| Special Topics | ||
| Algorithmic Problem Solving | ||
| Computer Organization | ||
| Assembly Language | ||
| UNIX Programming | ||
| The C Programming Language | ||
| Web Programming | ||
| Data Structures | ||
| Algorithms | ||
| Data Communications and Networks I | ||
| Data Communications and Networks II | ||
| Software Engineering I | ||
| Software Engineering II | ||
| Systems Programming | ||
| Database Design I | ||
| Database Design II | ||
| Topics in Computer Science | ||
| Total hours required for the degree | 120 | |
- 1
All core science and math courses must be completed with a grade of "C" or better.
- 2
Students must complete at least 39 credit hours of upper-level (3000-4999) courses.
Requirements for the Bachelor of Science Degree with a Major in Physics--Medical Physics Track
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Core Curriculum | 60 | |
| Core Curriculum Areas A-E (See VSU Core Curriculum) | 42 | |
| Physics majors are required to take MATH 1113 in Area A and MATH 2261 in Area D.2. They are advised to take PHYS 2211K and PHYS 2212K in Area D.2. | ||
| Core Curriculum Area F 1 | ||
| PHYS 2700 | Modern Physics | 1 |
| CHEM 1211 & 1211L | Principles of Chemistry I and Principles of Chemistry Laboratory I | 4 |
| CHEM 1212 & 1212L | Principles of Chemistry II and Principles of Chemistry Laboratory II | 4 |
| MATH 2262 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus II | 4 |
| MATH 2263 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus III | 4 |
| MATH 2261 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus I (1 hour left over from Area D.2) | 1 |
| Senior College Curriculum | 60 | |
| Required Courses 2 | 33 | |
| BIOL 1107 & 1107L | Principles of Biology I and Principles of Biology Laboratory I | 4 |
| BIOL 1108 & 1108L | Principles of Biology II and Principles of Biology Laboratory II | 4 |
| BIOL 2251K | Human Anatomy and Physiology I | 4 |
| BIOL 2252K | Human Anatomy and Physiology II | 4 |
| BIOL 3200 | Introductory Genetics | 3 |
| BIOL 3700 | Neuroscience | 3 |
| PHYS 3100 | Optics | 4 |
| PHYS 3810 | Mathematical Methods of Physics | 3 |
| PHYS 4310 | Thermodynamics | 3 |
| Select two of the following: | 6 | |
| Theoretical Mechanics I | ||
| Electromagnetism I | ||
| Quantum Mechanics I | ||
| Supporting Courses and Electives | 21 | |
| MATH 3340 | Ordinary Differential Equations | 3 |
| Modern Foreign Language (3 hours may be taken in Area C) | 3-6 | |
| Other Guided Electives | 13-16 | |
| History of the Life Sciences | ||
| Ecology and Evolution | ||
| Cell Biology | ||
| Molecular Biophysics | ||
| Molecular Genetics | ||
| Protein Biochemistry | ||
| Biology Internship | ||
| Organic Chemistry I | ||
| Organic Chemistry II | ||
| Inorganic Chemistry | ||
| Biochemistry I and Laboratory Techniques in Biochemistry | ||
| Biochemistry II | ||
| Physical Chemistry I | ||
| Physical Chemistry II | ||
| Seminar | ||
| Special Topics | ||
| Computational Physics I | ||
| Experimental Physics | ||
| Theoretical Mechanics II | ||
| Electromagnetism II | ||
| Quantum Mechanics II | ||
| Internship in Physics | ||
| Directed Study in Physics | ||
| Trigonometry | ||
| Set Theory | ||
| Probability and Statistics | ||
| Modern Algebra I | ||
| Mathematical Analysis | ||
| Mathematical Statistics I | ||
| Special Topics in Mathematics | ||
| Total hours required for the degree | 120 | |
- 1
All science and math courses must be completed with a grade of "C" or better.
- 2
Students must complete at least 39 credit hours of upper-level (3000-4999) courses.
