Program Requirements
- Total Units Required: 52-55
- Grade Requirement: Students must complete all coursework for the Physics major with a grade of at least a C–.
Required Courses
Majors in Physics are required to complete the following courses:
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| MATH 1510 | Calculus I | 3 |
| MATH 1520 | Calculus II | 3 |
| MATH 2130 | Calculus III | 3 |
| MATH 2500 | Differential Equations | 3 |
| PHYSICS 1740 | Physics I | 3-4 |
| or PHYSICS 1760 | Focused Physics I | |
| PHYSICS 1741 | Physics I Laboratory | 1 |
| PHYSICS 1742 | Physics II | 3-4 |
| or PHYSICS 1762 | Focused Physics II | |
| PHYSICS 1743 | Physics II Laboratory | 1 |
| PHYSICS 2170 | Introduction to Quantum Physics | 3 |
| PHYSICS 4011 | Mechanics | 3 |
| PHYSICS 4021 | Electricity and Magnetism | 3 |
| Total Units | 29-31 | |
Students who have completed MATH 2801 Honors Mathematics I and MATH 2802 Honors Mathematics II will have fulfilled the requirement for MATH 1510 Calculus I, MATH 1520 Calculus II, and MATH 2130 Calculus III.
Additional Math courses recommended for the physics major include the following:
- MATH 3008 Mathematics for the Physical Sciences or MATH 3180 Introduction to Calculus of Several Variables (We recommend that this course precede PHYSICS 4021 Electricity and Magnetism.)
- MATH 3300 Matrix Algebra (We recommend that this course precede PHYSICS 4074 Introduction to Particle Physics.)
- PHYSICS 5010 Theoretical Physics and PHYSICS 5020 Methods of Theoretical Physics II are also recommended.
Required Advanced Laboratories
Students must also complete PHYSICS 3322 Physical Measurement Laboratory and one additional upper-level laboratory course chosen from the following:
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| PHYSICS 3322 | Physical Measurement Laboratory | 3 |
| PHYSICS 3321 | Electronics Laboratory | 3 |
| or PHYSICS 3323 | Optics and Wave Physics Laboratory | |
| or PHYSICS 3324 | Biophysics Laboratory | |
| or PHYSICS 4027 | Introduction to Computational Physics | |
| or CHEM 4035 | Nuclear and Radiochemistry Lab | |
| Total Units | 6 | |
Required Advanced Courses
Majors are required to complete 9 additional units of advanced courses (3000 level or higher) in Physics, excluding PHYSICS 3941 Selected Topics in Physics III, PHYSICS 3942 Selected Topics in Physics III, PHYSICS 4941 Selected Topics in Physics IV, PHYSICS 4942 Selected Topics in Physics IV, PHYSICS 4998 Honors Program, and PHYSICS 5000 Independent Work. Students must receive letter grades for these advanced courses, and the course must be completed with a grade of at least a C–. These 9 units may include the courses listed above and may also include one upper-level engineering course chosen from the following:
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| ESE 3510 | Signals and Systems | 3 |
| ESE 4820 | Digital Signal Processing | 3 |
| ESE 4290 | Basic Principles of Quantum Optics and Quantum Information | 3 |
| ESE 4360 | Semiconductor Devices | 3 |
| ESE 4380 | Applied Optics | 3 |
| ESE 4410 | Control Systems | 3 |
| ESE 5310 | Nano and Micro Photonics | 3 |
| ESE 5320 | Introduction to Nano-Photonic Devices | 3 |
| ESE 5820 | Fundamentals and Applications of Modern Optical Imaging | 3 |
| MEMS 3410 | Fluid Mechanics | 3 |
Science-Breadth Requirement
Majors must select three of the following courses to satisfy the science-breadth requirement. One of the three courses must be CHEM 1030 Advanced Placement Chemistry I, CHEM 1040 Advanced Placement Chemistry II, CHEM 1601 Principles of General Chemistry I, CHEM 1602 Principles of General Chemistry II, CHEM 1701 General Chemistry I, CHEM 1702 General Chemistry II, CHEM 4010 Physical Chemistry I, or CHEM 4020 Physical Chemistry II.
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| BIOL 2960 | Principles of Biology I | 4 |
| BIOL 2970 | Principles of Biology II | 4 |
| CHEM 1030 | Advanced Placement Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHEM 1040 | Advanced Placement Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM 1601 | Principles of General Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHEM 1602 | Principles of General Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM 1701 | General Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHEM 1702 | General Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM 1751 | General Chemistry Laboratory I | 2 |
| CHEM 1752 | General Chemistry Laboratory II | 2 |
| CHEM 4010 | Physical Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHEM 4020 | Physical Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM 4079 | Instrumental Methods: Physical Chemistry | 3 |
| CSE 1301 | Introduction to Computer Science | 3 |
| CSE 1302 | Introduction to Computer Engineering | 3 |
| CSE 2407 | Data Structures and Algorithms | 3 |
| EEPS 2021 | Introduction to Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Science Lab Section | 1 |
Students who have received credit for CHEM 1030 Advanced Placement Chemistry I and CHEM 1040 Advanced Placement Chemistry II can use them toward the science-breadth requirement.
Additional Information
Senior Honors
Students are encouraged to work toward Latin honors (i.e., cum laude, magna cum laude, and 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 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 4998 Honors Program, students may earn up to 6 units of credit for the honors project.
The Physics department also offers Physics majors the possibility to earn departmental distinctions. These distinctions require the same grade point average cutoffs as Latin honors but are calculated exclusively from the grades in Physics courses (i.e., all courses with the prefix PHYSICS). 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% (highest distinction) and the top 15% to 50% (high distinction) of the physics majors in their senior year as ranked by their GPA in Physics courses. Students who meet the GPA cutoff but who do not undertake undergraduate research and a senior thesis may only receive the third level of distinction.
Transfer Credit and Study Abroad
Students may transfer up to 9 credits of advanced coursework (3000+ level) to satisfy major requirements by taking comparable physics courses at another institution. Prior approval by the department is needed. Online or other distance learning courses are not eligible for transfer credit.
Contact Info
| Website: | http://physics.wustl.edu |