Physics, Bachelor of Arts
To obtain a B.A. with a major in Physics, a student must fulfill university, college, and departmental requirements. Hour requirements follow:
- 46 hours of University General Education courses
Most commonly, Physics majors do not complete 46 hours of coursework solely for the purpose of meeting University General Education requirements. Instead, they often test out of at least three hours of fundamental academic skills, take courses that meet both the six hours of diversity requirements and six hours of distribution requirements, and meet four hours of the natural sciences distribution requirement through completing major courses. In such cases, the number of credit hours taken solely to meet General Education requirements is reduced to 33 or fewer.
-
16 hours of a foreign language
-
12-19 hours college breadth requirement
-
49 hours of major courses
-
0-9 hours of electives
TOTAL HOURS: 120
Requirements
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Introductory Physics and Math Courses | ||
| PHYS 1950 | PHYSICS GATEWAY COURSE | 1 |
| PHYS 2110 & PHYS 1154 | GENERAL PHYSICS I - CALCULUS LEVEL and GENERAL PHYSICS LABORATORY I | 5 |
| PHYS 2120 & PHYS 1164 | GENERAL PHYSICS-CALCULUS LEVEL and GENERAL PHYSICS LABORATORY II | 5 |
| PHYS 2130 | MODERN PHYSICS | 4 |
| PHYS 3250 | MATHEMATICAL METHODS OF PHYSICS 1 | 3 |
| MATH 1950 | CALCULUS I | 5 |
| MATH 1960 | CALCULUS II | 4 |
| MATH 1970 | CALCULUS III | 4 |
| Physics Core Courses | ||
| PHYS 3450 | CLASSICAL MECHANICS | 3 |
| PHYS 3600 | THERMODYNAMICS AND STATISTICAL PHYSICS | 3 |
| PHYS 3750 | ELECTRICITY AND MAGNETISM I | 3 |
| PHYS 3800 | OPTICS | 3 |
| PHYS 4200 | INTRODUCTION TO QUANTUM MECHANICS | 3 |
| Advanced Laboratory | ||
| PHYS 3504 | EXPERIMENTAL PHYSICS I | 1 |
| Select one of the following: | 1 | |
| EXPERIMENTAL MATERIALS SCIENCE | ||
| EXPERIMENTAL PHYSICS III | ||
| EXPERIMENTAL PHYSICS IV | ||
| Senior Project | ||
| In addition to the above requirements, a senior project is required, for which students must register for PHYS 4950 or PHYS 4960. 2 | ||
| PHYS 4950 | PROBLEMS IN PHYSICS | 1 |
| or PHYS 4960 | PROBLEMS IN PHYSICS | |
| Total Credits | 49 | |
- 1
Students taking a number of 2000-level mathematics courses may be permitted to waive PHYS 3250 or PHYS 3260.
- 2
Please see more details about the senior project in the “Other Information” portion of the physics section.
For the B.A. degree, foreign language is required through the intermediate level.
| Freshman | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | |
| ENGL 1150 | ENGLISH COMPOSITION I (*) | 3 |
| MATH 1950 | CALCULUS I (**) | 5 |
| PHYS 1950 | PHYSICS GATEWAY COURSE | 1 |
| Foreign Language Course 1110*** | 5 | |
*ENGL 1150: Requires appropriate placement. | ||
**MATH 1950: Requires placement through the Accuplacer or ALEKS Exam or ACT or SAT scores OR grades of C- or better within the past 2 years in both Math 1320 and 1330 or Math 1340. | ||
***Level 1110 foreign language courses count as a Humanity/Fine Arts course, Global Diversity, and toward the student's BA requirement. If student is fulfilling the BA requirement via alternative methods, then 16 additional credits including a HFA and Global Diversity will need to be factored in to this degree plan. | ||
| Credits | 14 | |
| Spring | ||
| MATH 1960 | CALCULUS II | 4 |
| PHYS 2110 & PHYS 1154 | GENERAL PHYSICS I - CALCULUS LEVEL and GENERAL PHYSICS LABORATORY I (*) | 5 |
| Foreign Language Course 1120 | 5 | |
| Credits | 14 | |
| Sophomore | ||
| Fall | ||
| MATH 1970 | CALCULUS III | 4 |
| CMST 1110 or CMST 2120 | PUBLIC SPEAKING FUNDS or ARGUMENTATION AND DEBATE | 3 |
| PHYS 2120 & PHYS 1164 | GENERAL PHYSICS-CALCULUS LEVEL and GENERAL PHYSICS LABORATORY II (*,**) | 5 |
| Foreign Language Course 2110 | 3 | |
**PHYS 2120-1164 counts as the A&S Additional Gen Ed Natural Science with Lab. | ||
| Credits | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| ENGL 1160 | ENGLISH COMPOSITION II (*) | 3 |
| HIST 1000 or Course towards Minor/2nd Major** | 3 | |
| PHYS 2130 | MODERN PHYSICS (***) | 4 |
| PHYS 3250 | MATHEMATICAL METHODS OF PHYSICS (^) | 3 |
| Foreign Language Course 2120 | 3 | |
**A&S College Requirement Options | ||
| Credits | 16 | |
| Junior | ||
| Fall | ||
| ENGL 3980 | TECHNICAL WRITING ACROSS THE DISCIPLINES (*) | 3 |
| HIST 1010 or Course towards Minor/2nd Major** | 3 | |
| PHYS 3504 | EXPERIMENTAL PHYSICS I (***) | 1 |
| PHYS 3750 | ELECTRICITY AND MAGNETISM I (^) | 3 |
| Social Science & US Diversity Course | 3 | |
| Humanities/Fine Arts Course | 3 | |
**A&S College Requirement Options | ||
| Credits | 16 | |
| Spring | ||
| PHYS 3450 | CLASSICAL MECHANICS (*) | 3 |
| PHYS 3800 | OPTICS (**) | 3 |
| Natural/Physical Science no Lab*** | 3 | |
| Humanities/Fine Arts course^ | 3 | |
| Social Science | 3 | |
***NPS Must be in a field other than PHYS. | ||
^HFA must be in a 2nd discipline. | ||
| Credits | 15 | |
| Senior | ||
| Fall | ||
| PHYS 3544 | EXPERIMENTAL PHYSICS III (*) or EXPERIMENTAL MATERIALS SCIENCE or EXPERIMENTAL PHYSICS IV | 1 |
| PHYS 3600 | THERMODYNAMICS AND STATISTICAL PHYSICS (**) | 3 |
| PHYS 4200 | INTRODUCTION TO QUANTUM MECHANICS (***) | 3 |
| Humanities and Fine Arts for A&S or Course towards Minor/2nd Major^ | 3 | |
| Social Science# | 3 | |
^A&S College Requirement Options. HFA Must be in a 3rd discipline. | ||
#SS Must be in a 2nd discipline. | ||
| Credits | 13 | |
| Spring | ||
| PHYS 4950 or PHYS 4960 | PROBLEMS IN PHYSICS (*) or PROBLEMS IN PHYSICS | 1-3 |
| Social Science Gen Ed for A&S or Course towards Minor/2nd Major** | 3 | |
| Elective or Course towards Minor/2nd Major | 3 | |
| Elective or Course towards Minor/2nd Major | 3 | |
| Elective***,^ | 3 | |
| Elective***,^ | 3 | |
**A&S College Requirement Options. SS Must be in a 3rd discipline | ||
***27 upper level credits throughout the entire degree are required. Electives may need to be taken at the 3000-4000 level to reach this minimum. | ||
^120 total credits required for degree. Electives are used to reach that minimum amount. | ||
| Credits | 16-18 | |
| Total Credits | 119-121 | |
This roadmap is a suggested plan of study and does not replace meeting with an advisor. Please note that students may need to adjust the actual sequence of courses based on course availability. Please consult an advisor in your major program for further guidance.
This plan is not a contract and curriculum is subject to change
Additional Information About this Plan:
University Degree Requirements:
The minimum number of hours for a UNO undergraduate degree is 120 credit hours. Please review the requirements for your specific program to determine all requirements for the program. In order to graduate on-time (four years for an undergraduate degree), you need to take 30 hours each year.
Placement Exams:
For Math, English, Foreign Language, a placement exam may be required. More information on these exams can be found at https://www.unomaha.edu/enrollment-management/testing-center/placement-exams/information.php
**Transfer credit or placement exam scores may change suggested plan of study
GPA Requirements: 2.0
Graduation Requirements: Physics majors must also take the two assessment tests (Major Field Test and Local test) and complete the exit interview.
The senior project must be approved and the department chair notified at least eight months prior to graduation as a Physics major and the student must register for either PHYS 4950 or PHYS 4960.