2025-2026 Academic Catalog

Jun 07, 2025

2025-2026 Academic Catalog

Physics, BS

Print Degree Planner (opens a new window) |

About the Program

Physics is the study of matter, what it’s made of and how it moves through space and time, and the fundamental forces that dictate how everything in the Universe works. A bachelor’s degree in physics prepares you for a career in a variety of technical and computational fields or continued work towards an advanced degree.

Degree Requirements

120 Credit Hours
Minimum grade of C- required for all College of Engineering and Sciences courses
Average GPA of 2. 5 in all ASTR/PHYS/CHM courses required for graduation
Minimum GPA of 2.0 required for graduation
Certain courses may only be available at one campus location

PNW General Education Core (32-33 Credits)

English Composition (6 Credits): ENGL 10400 - English Composition I and ENGL 10500 - English Composition II
Speech Communication (3 Credits): COM 11400 - Fundamentals Of Speech Communication
Quantitative Reasoning (5 Credits): MA 16300 - Integrated Calculus Analysis Geometry I
Natural Sciences (4 Credits): CHM 11500 - General Chemistry
Technology (3-4 Credits): CS 12300 - Programming I: Java (Also allowed: ENGR 15100 - Software Tools For Engineers or CIS 16600 - Introduction To Programming )
Humanities (3 Credits): Select from the Humanities Core list
Social Sciences (3 Credits): Select from the Social Sciences Core list
First-Year Experience (FYE) (1 Credit): PHYS 19400 - Freshman Physics Orientation
Additional Credits (4 Credits): PHYS 15200 - Mechanics

Major Core (66 Credits)

Other Required Courses (21-22 Credits)

PHYS Electives (9 Credits):

Choose from ASTR (any course 30000 or higher), PHYS (any course 30000 or higher not in major core)
Typically, one PHYS elective is offered every seester and one ASTR elective offered every Fall
Pre-Health Attribute: Also allowed as PHYS electives, with permission, are BIOL 10100 - Introductory Biology , BIOL 10200 - Introductory Biology , and any other 4 credit hour Biology course.
Secondary Education Attribute: Also allowed as PHYS elective with permission is EDCI 49700 - Supervised Teaching

CES Electives (6 Credits):

ASTR (any coursenot used as a PHYS elective, BIOL (any course excluding BIOL 10008 and BIOL 10700 ), CE (any course), CHM (any course excluding CHM 11100 and CHM 19400 ), CS (any course excluding CS 10000 ), EAS (any course), ECE (any course), ENGR (any course excluding ENGR 18600 ), FIS (any course 20000 or higher), MSE (any course), MA (any course 30000 or higher), ME (any course), PHYS (any course 30000 or higher), SCI (any course excluding SCI 10300 , SCI 10400 , SCI 10500 , SCI 11200 , SCI 11300 , SCI 11400 , SCI 20200 and SCI 31500 ), and STAT (any course 30000 or higher)
Secondary Education Attribute: Also allowed as CES electives, with permission, are EDCI 30900 , EDCI 34600 , EDCI 35500 , and EDCI 36600

Free Electives (6-7 Credits):

Choose any course not used is PHYS or CES electives

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

Degree Map

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, select from the Experiential Learning course list

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 (16 Credits)

Semester 2 (16 Credits)

Semester 3 (15-16 Credits)

CS 12300 - Programming I: Java Also allowed: ENGR 15100 or CIS 16600
MA 26100 - Multivariate Calculus (m)
PHYS 25100 - Heat, Electricity And Optics (m)
Free Elective

Semester 4 (14-15 Credits)

CS 12400 - Programming II: Object-Oriented Java Also allowed: ECE 15200 or CIS 26300
MA 26400 - Differential Equations (m)
PHYS 29400 - Sophomore-Junior Physics Seminar
PHYS 30500 - Intermediate Mathematical Physics - (H) Spring only
PHYS 34200 - Modern Physics - (m)(H) Spring Only
PHYS 34300 - Modern Physics Laboratory - (H) Spring Only

Semester 5 (16 Credits)

PHYS 31000 - Intermediate Mechanics (m)(H) Fall Only Even Years (See Note 1)
STAT 34500 - Statistics
Free Elective
Humanities - select from Gen Ed Core list
PHYS Elective

Semester 6 (16 Credits)

MA 26500 - Linear Algebra
PHYS 33000 - Intermediate Electricity And Magnetism (H) - Spring Only Even Years (See Note 1)
PHYS 38000 - Advanced Physics Laboratory (H) - Spring Only Odd Years (See Note 1)
PHYS 49400 - Senior Physics Seminar
PHYS Elective
Social Sciences - select from Gen Ed Core list

Semester 7 (12-14 Credits)

PHYS 30800 - Scientific Computation (m)(H) - Fall Only Odd Years (See Note 1)
PHYS 31100 - Quantum Physics I (H) - Fall Only Odd Years (See Note 1)
PHYS 40200 - Senior Research I (e)
CES Elective
Free Elective

Semester 8 (15 Credits)

PHYS 30900 - Scientific Computation II - (H) Spring Only Even Years (See Note 1)
PHYS 40300 - Senior Research II
PHYS 41800 - Thermal And Statistical Physics - (H) Spring Only Even Years (See Note 1)
CES Elective
PHYS Elective

Additional Information and Guidelines

Note 1 - Physics courses are offered on a two year rotation. Degree map, as listed, assumes semester 5 is an even-year fall. If Semester 5 is an odd-year fall, make the following:

Swap:

PHYS 31000 and PHYS Elective (Semester 5) with PHYS 30800 and PHYS 31100 (Semester 7)

Swap:

PHYS 33000 and PHYS 38000 (Semester 6) with PHYS 30900 and PHYS 41800 (Semester 8)

Resources

The 8 semester plan of study is a recommended sequence of classes designed to show how this program can be completed within four years.

Visit the 15 to Finish website for information and resources.

For career information, click here to visit the Careers and Employment Trends page.

For Financial Aid eligibility, click here. See Important Dates and Deadlines for annual FAFSA filing deadlines and Indiana state aid deadlines. State Financial Aid recipients are required to complete 30 credits per calendar year to maintain eligibility for the 21st Century Scholars award and the On-time Frank O’Bannon grant.

Financial Guarantee: If you follow the degree map and find a course unavailable, you may be able to take the course for free in a future semester. Certain exclusions apply.

College Scorecard

The U.S. Department of Education has created a scorecard for each university and its programs. The scorecard shows data for the university such as graduation rate, average annual cost, and median earnings. Then, when certain minimum standards have been met, data are available for a specific program. That data could include median earnings, median total debt, and number of graduates. The link below will help you learn more:

https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?490805-Purdue-University-Northwest&fos_code=4008&fos_credential=3