2011-2012 University Catalog
Applied and Engineering Physics, MS
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Banner Code: SC-MS-PHAE
This degree contains elements of traditional physics programs and the application of physics to a diversity of critical societal problems. The program is divided into three areas of emphasis. The standard emphasis is intended for students who may wish to pursue further graduate study in physics leading to a PhD degree in preparation for a career in basic research. The applied physics emphasis is intended for those who wish to apply the techniques and subject areas of physics to multifaceted problems encountered in the workplace, particularly in physics, engineering, computational science, and other related areas. The engineering physics emphasis allows students to select a larger number of courses from electrical engineering or nanotechnology and other areas.
Many courses are offered during late afternoon or evening hours to allow students with full-time employment to attend easily. Students employed at area high-technology organizations may take up to 6 credits (out of 30) for work done on the job under the guidance of a faculty member. This employment-related research may be conducted under an optional 3-credit research project or an optional 6-credit master’s thesis. Master’s students who are not employed full time may apply for financial aid or a limited number of research assistantships.
This program of study is offered by the School of Physics, Astronomy, and Computational Sciences in the College of Science.
Admission Requirements
Individuals holding a baccalaureate degree in physics or a related field from an accredited institution and who earned a GPA of 3.00 (out of 4.00) in their last 60 credits are invited to apply for admission. If the baccalaureate degree is in a field other than physics, applicants should have taken several courses beyond the introductory physics courses, such as junior-level classical mechanics, electricity and magnetism, or electronics. Applicants may be required to make up one or two deficiencies, based on a graduate physics advisor’s assessment, and be provisionally admitted into the program. Three letters of recommendation must be submitted, preferably from former professors. The general GRE and the GRE subject test in physics are recommended for applicants who received their baccalaureate degrees within the past five years. |
Degree Requirements
Candidates for the degree must successfully complete 30 credits in the categories shown below: 6 credits of required core courses:
For the applied physics emphasis and the engineering physics emphasis, students may substitute:
15 credits in one of three emphases:
Standard emphasis
Students should take any five of the following courses: Engineering physics emphasis
Students should take: Applied physics emphasis
Students should take: plus any 9 credits from this list:
9 credits of electives chosen from courses in:
- Physics, chemistry, mathematics, engineering, information technology, and computational sciences and informatics. No more than 6 credits may be chosen from areas outside ASTR, CSI, ECE, NANO, and PHYS.
Elective credits can include a project or thesis. Notes:
Students may choose to do either ECE/PHYS 798 Research Project (3 credits) or ECE/PHYS 799 Master’s Thesis (6 credits), but not both. The research project may be conducted at a student’s place of employment with the concurrence of a faculty advisor.
The thesis is a more substantial piece of work performed under the supervision of a faculty member and requires students to make an oral defense. ECE/PHYS 798 may be taken only once. No more than 6 credits of PHYS 799 may be applied to the degree.
In addition to the requirements stated above, students may also select a research focus in astrophysics, atmospheric physics, biological applications of physics, computational physics, condensed matter, instrumentation (engineering physics), or nonlinear dynamics. A focus requires that students complete 15 credits of approved courses.
Students in the master’s degree program can earn a graduate certificate in computational techniques and applications from the School of Physics, Astronomy, and Computational Sciences by choosing an approved sequence of courses. Sample course lists for various focus areas:
Instrumentation/engineering physics:
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