Undergraduate

Undergraduate Academics

The Department of Physics and Astronomy at Hunter College, offers comprehensive training that can lead to a teaching position, or industrial, institutional, or government work, as well as graduate study. The major includes lecture courses, laboratory courses, and the opportunity for qualified students to participate in research with faculty members.

Our undergraduate curriculum serves undergraduate liberal arts students who seek, by the study of Physics, to acquire critical thinking skills and develop the understanding and problem-solving abilities which are increasingly needed in our technological society. We prepare our undergraduate physics majors for graduate and professional schools or a variety of careers, including teaching, engineering, medicine, computer science, and industrial research and development.

Honors
Search the course catalog for courses which provide opportunity for students to do individual research (experimental or theoretical).

Physics BA/MA Programs

Program Course of Study

2.5 years of physics courses are required for a bachelor's degree. Additional elective courses are recommended for a well rounded knowledge of physics. Recommended minors are computer science, chemistry or mathematics. (Minors consist of 12 credits.) Most other minors are acceptable. Students wishing to continue for a doctoral degree in Physics should complete the accelerated BA/MA program.

Total (Minimum) Credits for a BA in Physics: 26

Note: Not all courses are offered every semester. See our Course Rotation chart for more information.

Level One of Program:

PHYS 111: Introductory Physics, Part I with Calculus (includes lab), 5.5 credits, Mechanics, Heat and Sound [Pre-requisite: MATH150 (Calculus I)]
PHYS 121: Introductory Physics, Part II with Calculus (includes lab), 5.5 credits, Electricity, Magnetism, Optics, Atomic and Nuclear Physics

Level Two of Program:
These courses may be taken in any order. This part of the sequence takes three semesters.

Lecture Courses:
(Pre-requisites: PHYS 111, PHYS 121 and MATH 250)

PHYS 221: Electronics, 4 cr.
PHYS 330: Atomic & Nuclear Physics, 4 cr.
PHYS 334: Electricity and Magnetism, 4 cr.
PHYS 335: Intermediate Mechanics, 4 cr.

Laboratory Courses:
(Pre-requisites: PHYS 111 and PHYS 121)

PHYS 230: Classical Physics Lab, 2 cr.
PHYS 235: Modern Physics Lab, 2 cr.
PHYS 222: Electronics Lab, 2 cr.
Each of these lab courses may be substituted by PHYS 385 Numerical Method I, 3 cr. or PHYS 485 Numerical Methods II, 3 cr.

Additional Mathematics and Chemistry Requirements:

One year of high school or college-level chemistry
Calculus I, II and III, as well as MATH 254 (Mathematics for Scientists)

Recommended Elective Courses:

PHYS 425: Quantum Theory
PHYS 401: Theoretical Physics
PHYS 342: Optics
PHYS 336: Statistical and Thermal Physics
PHYS 385: Numerical Methods I
PHYS 445: Solid State
PHYS 415: Electricity/Magnetism (Level II)
PHYS 424: Plasma Physics

NOTE: Most of these courses also have 600 level designations. If a student registers for the above as a 600 level course, then up to 6 credits may be used toward the 30 credit masters degree in the accelerated BA/MA program.

Biophysics is a field that combines Biology, Physics, Chemistry, and Computational tools.

Course of Study
Students wishing to continue on for a Doctoral Degree in Physics should complete the accelerated BA/MA program. In addition to the 26 credits required by the Physics BA Program, 30 Credits of masters-level courses plus a thesis are required for an MA degree.

Level One of Program:
Complete 26 credits of required BA Physics courses.

Level Two of Program:
These courses serve as a bridge between the corresponding 300 and 700 level courses.

PHYS 625: Introduction to Quantum Theory [3 cr. ]
PHYS 605: Theoretical Physics [3 cr.]
PHYS 615: Electricity/Magnetism (Level II) [3 cr. ]

Note: A maximum of 6 credits in this level can be used toward the MA degree.

Level Three of Program:
(All 16 credits are required.)

PHYS 701: Mathematical Physics (Graduate Level) [4 cr. ]
PHYS 711: Analytical Dynamics (Graduate Level) [4 cr. ]
PHYS 715: Electricity and Magnetism I (Graduate Level) [4 cr. ]
PHYS 725: Quantum Mechanics I (Graduate Level) [4 cr. ]

Recommended Sequence Courses by Subject

Electricity and Magnetism:

PHYS 334
PHYS 615
PHYS 715

Atomic and Quantum Mechanics:

PHYS 330
PHYS 625
PHYS 725

Mathematical Physics Courses:

MATH 254
PHYS 605
PHYS 701

Thesis Requirement
A Masters thesis is required to complete the BA/MA program. This research work is done under the supervision of a physics faculty advisor. It is recommended students begin work on thesis research as early as possible by discussing the various possible areas of research with members of the faculty. Instead of a thesis, a student may elect to take a comprehensive examination covering the material in the required 700 level courses. However, this is not recommended, as the research experience gained in the thesis work is important as a gauge of the student's ability to do further research. Also, a completed MA thesis is a written work which is useful for employment purposes. It is possible to receive course credits for this research with faculty permission.

Research Courses: PHYS 771, 772 and PHYS 773: Research in Physics [1 cr-4 cr. See advisor.]

This program is for students who wish to earn an MA in Physics and teach grades 7 - 12.

Departmental requirements for admission are an undergraduate degree with a major in physics. A grade point average of 2.8 or better is required in both the applicant’s overall undergraduate course work and in the applicant’s science courses.

Applicants who have an overall GPA between 2.5 and 2.79, and meet all other requirements for matriculation may be considered for admission to nonmatriculate status. Only students who demonstrate strong verbal skills in addition to other indices of ability to do graduate work will be admitted as a nonmatriculate. Applicants will be required to provide an on-site writing sample (essay) and participate in a face-to-face interview. Academically relevant data, such as scores on the General Aptitude Test of the Graduate Record Exam or on the Liberal Arts and Sciences Test of the NYS Teacher Certification Examination may also be submitted in support of admission.

See the School of Education for additional information on admission and program requirements.

Meeting the minimum requirements for admission does not guarantee acceptance to the program, which is based, by necessity, on the limitations of space and resources.

Degree Requirements:
(minimum 16 credits)

PHYS 630 Science and Society (3 credits; required)

PHYS 660 Challenging Concepts in Physics (4 credits; required)

Plus three electives chosen from:

PHYS 685 Numerical Methods I (3 credits; strongly recommended)

PHYS 605 Mathematical Physics (3 credits)

PHYS 615 Electromagnetic Theory (3 credits)

PHYS 625 Introduction to Quantum Mechanics (3 credits)

PHYS 645 Solid State Physics (3 credits)

PHYS 695 Numerical Methods II (3 credits)

700-level physics courses offered at the Graduate Center can be substituted for 600-level courses with permission of the graduate advisor.

Culminating Project Students will be expected either to prepare a research proposal or to conduct a Physics Education Research (PER) project while enrolled in PHYS 660, which serves as the capstone course in physics.

Minor

The Department of Physics and Astrology offers a minor program for undergraduate students.

Minor Requirements:

Complete all of the following courses:
- MATH 15000 - Calculus I
- MATH 15500 - Calculus 2

Earn at least 12 credits:
- PHYS courses - including two courses numbered above 200 or one course numbered above 300.
- Note: The prerequisites for the 300-level courses include MATH 25000 - Calculus 3 and/or MATH 25400 - Ordinary Differential Equations.

Learn More About the Minor