2023-2024 Academic Catalog
Physical Sciences, BS
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About the Program
 A degree in the Physical Sciences trains students to solve complex problems that require knowledge and techniques from a variety of disciplines. This interdisciplinary program provides a broad foundation in chemistry and physics and can be tailored to match your interests. Additional elective topics for your major include astronomy and astrophysics, computer science, earth science, engineering, environmental science, food science, forensics, and statistics. With the help of your academic advisor and departmental faculty, and with the prior approval of the department chair, you can decide which elective courses best meet your needs for a Physical Sciences degree.
Degree Requirements
- 120 Credit Hours
- Minimum grade of C- required for all College of Engineering and Sciences courses
- Minimum GPA of 2.0 required for graduation
- Certain courses may only be available at one campus location
PNW General Education Core (31 or 32 Credits)
*Note: To meet the 30 credit minimum for Gen Ed courses, if MA 16300 is used for Quantitative Reasoning, one 3 credit Gen Ed elective is needed, if MA 16031 is used, two 3 credit hour Gen Ed electives are needed.
Major Core (23 or 26 Credits)
Other Required Courses (63 or 65 Credits)
Departmental Electives (21 Credits): A minimum of seven (7) credit hours must be at the 30000 level or above; ASTR (any course), CHM (any course 20000 or higher), EAS (any course), FIS (any course), PHYS
(any course 20000 or higher), or any SCI course from the following:
CES Electives (12 Credits): Select four (4) CES electives: ASTR (any course), BIOL (any course excluding BIOL 10008 and BIOL 10700), CHM (any course 20000 or higher), CE (any course), CS (any course excluding CS 10000), EAS (any course), ECE (any course), ENGR (any course excluding ENGR 18600), FIS (any course), MSE (any course), MA (any course 20000 or higher excluding MA 23700, MA 23800, and MA 23900), ME (any course), PHYS (any course 20000 or higher), STAT (any course 20000 or higher), or any SCI course from the following:
Free Electives (30 or 32 Credits) See Note 1
Civics Literacy Proficiency
The Civics Literacy Proficiency activities are designed to develop civic knowledge of Purdue Northwest students in an effort to graduate a more informed citizenry.
Students will complete the Proficiency by passing a test of civic knowledge, and completing one of three paths:
- Attending six approved civics-related events and completing an assessment for each; or
- Completing 12 podcasts created by the Purdue Center for C-SPAN Scholarship and Engagement that use C-SPAN material and completing an assessment for each; or
- Earning a passing grade for one of the approved courses (or transferring in approved AP or departmental credit in lieu of taking a course)
For more information visit the Civics Literacy Proficiency website.
Total 120 Credits Required
Requirements
Minimum Grade and Grade Point Average (GPA): Minimum grade of C- required for all College of Engineering and Sciences courses; 2.0 GPA
Experiential Learning (EL): One EL course required. EL courses are noted by (e) next to the course title.
General Education Core: General Education notations can be found within the course description. Please click on a course to see if it meets a Gen Ed requirement.
Milestone Courses noted by (m) next to the course title have been identified as being critical to your success in this field of study.
Courses that are only offered on one campus will be noted by an (H) for Hammond, or (W) for Westville.
Please see the Additional Information and Guidelines section below for more information.
Semester 1 (14-16 Credits)
Semester 2 (14-16 Credits)
Semester 3 (14-15 Credits)
Semester 5 (15-18 Credits)
- CES Elective (See Note 3)
- Departmental Elective (See Note 2)
- Departmental Elective (See Note 2)
- Free Elective
- Gen Ed Elective (1 or 2) - select from Gen Ed Core List (See Gen Ed Note above)
Semester 6 (15 Credits)
- CES Elective (See Note 3)
- Departmental Elective (See Note 2)
- Departmental Elective (See Note 2)
- Free Elective
- Social Science - select from Gen Ed Core List
Semester 7 (13-15 Credits)
Additional Information and Guidelines
Upper division Chemistry and Physics courses are offered on a two year rotation. Contact an advisor to determine the specific semester a particular course will be offered. Certain courses may only be available at one campus location.
Any individual course within CES must be a C- or better, but the average GPA for all disciplinary courses (CHM or PHYS courses) must be at least 2.50.
At least 29 credit hours of Departmental or CES or Free Electives must be 30000 level or higher. Students declaring this major must choose an approved concentration, or have a plan of study approved by the Department Chair when they declare the major. Incoming freshman must have an approved plan of study by the end of their 3rd semester. Students may pursue any minor but no more than 12 credits may overlap with the degree requirements.
Note 1: Students who take the MA 16031/16032 sequence instead of MA 16300/16400 will be short 4 credits during their first year. They will take an extra 3-cr Gen Ed. elective course during semester 5 and an additional 1 credit of free elective during semester 7. Students who take the PHYS 22000/22100 sequence instead of PHYS 15200/25100 will be 1 credit short during semester 3. They will take an additional 1 credit of free elective during semester 7.”
Note 2: Departmental Elective – (A minimum of 7 credit hours must be at the 30000 level or above.) ASTR (any course); CHM (any course 20000 or higher); EAS (any course); FIS (any course); PHYS (any course 20000 or higher); SCI (any course from the following: SCI 10601, SCI 12200, SCI 13100, SCI 15000, SCI 20200, and SCI 22000)
Note 3: CES Elective: ASTR (any course); BIOL (any course excluding BIOL 10008 and BIOL 10700); CHM (any course 20000 or higher); CE (any course); CS (any course excluding CS 10000); EAS (any course): ECE (any course): ENGR (any course excluding ENGR 18600); FIS (any course); MSE (any course); MA (any course 20000 or higher excluding MA 23700, MA 23800, and MA 23900); ME (any course); PHYS (any course 20000 or higher); SCI (any course from the following: SCI 10601, SCI 12200, SCI 13100, SCI 15000, SCI 20200, and 22200); and STAT (any course 20000 or higher).
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