2019-20 Academic Catalog 
    
    Mar 28, 2024  
2019-20 Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Physical Sciences, BS


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About the Program


Apply Now General Physical Sciences trains students through a multi-disciplinary approach to solve complex problems that require knowledge and techniques from a variety of disciplines.

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 (35 Credits Minimum)


Other Required Courses (63 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 Credits):  Select ten (10) free electives

Total 120 Credits Required


Note: Students who choose to take MA 16031  will need to take an additional two (2) credits in free electives to meet the 120 credit hour requirement.

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.  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 3 (15 Credits)


Semester 4 (16 Credits)


Semester 5 (15 Credits)


  • Departmental Elective (See Note 2)
  • Departmental Elective (See Note 2)
  • CES Elective (See Note 3)
  • Gen Ed Elective - select from Gen Ed Core List  
  • Free Elective

Semester 6 (15 Credits)


  • Departmental Elective (See Note 2)
  • Departmental Elective (See Note 2)
  • Social Science - select from Gen Ed Core List  
  • CES Elective (See Note 3)
  • Free Elective

Semester 7 (13 Credits)


Semester 8 (14 Credits)


Additional Information and Guidelines


Upper division 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 completed plan of study approved by the Department Head, at the time of declaration of degree. Students may pursue any minor but no more than 12 credits may overlap with the degree requirements.

Note 1: Students who choose to take MA 16031, MA 16032, PHYS 22000, and PHYS 22100 will need to take an additional five (5) credits in free electives to meet the 120 credit hour requirement.

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, 10010, 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 11000, 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).

Note 4: Students with an emphasis in physics may use PHYS 46900 instead. Students pursuing a secondary education attribute may use EDCI 49700 instead.

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. Annual FAFSA filing deadline is March 10. Financial Aid recipients are required to complete 30 credits per calendar year to stay eligible for the standard financial aid award.

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. 

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