General Education Foundations
Please use this link to view a list of courses that meet each GEF requirement.
NOTE: Some major requirements will fulfill specific GEF requirements. Please see the curriculum requirements listed below for details on which GEFs you will need to select.
| General Education Foundations | ||
| F1 - Composition & Rhetoric | 3-6 | |
| Introduction to Composition and Rhetoric and Composition, Rhetoric, and Research | ||
or ENGL 103 | Accelerated Academic Writing | |
| F2A/F2B - Science & Technology | 4-6 | |
| F3 - Math & Quantitative Reasoning | 3-4 | |
| F4 - Society & Connections | 3 | |
| F5 - Human Inquiry & the Past | 3 | |
| F6 - The Arts & Creativity | 3 | |
| F7 - Global Studies & Diversity | 3 | |
| F8 - Focus (may be satisfied by completion of a minor, double major, or dual degree) | 9 | |
| Total Hours | 31-37 | |
Please note that not all of the GEF courses are offered at all campuses. Students should consult with their advisor or academic department regarding the GEF course offerings available at their campus.
Degree Requirements
Students must complete WVU General Education Foundations requirements, College B.S. requirements, major requirements, and electives to total a minimum of 120 hours. For complete details on these requirements, visit the B.S. Degrees tab on the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences pages.
Departmental Requirements for the B.S. in Physics
Students may not earn both a B.A. and a B.S. in Physics. All students wishing to obtain a degree in Physics must comply with the following:
- Capstone Requirement: The university requires the successful completion of a Capstone course. Students majoring in Physics must complete PHYS 496 (other options maybe available depending on AoE selected).
- Writing and Communication Skills Requirement: Physics Bachelor of Science students fulfill the Writing and Communication Skills requirement by completing ENGL 101 and ENGL 102 (or ENGL 103), and two of the following SpeakWrite Certified Courses TM: PHYS 191, PHYS 341L, PHYS 376L PHYS 496, ASTR 496.
- Calculation of the GPA in the Major: Students are required to maintain at least a minimum cumulative 2.2 GPA in all courses counted toward the major. If a course is repeated, all attempts will be included in the calculation of the GPA unless the course is eligible for a D/F repeat.
- Area of Emphasis: Students completing a Bachelor of Science in Physics must complete an Area of Emphasis selected from Computational Physics, Medical Physics, Physics Teaching, Professional Preparation, or Space Physics. The Professional Preparation Area of Emphasis is the typical plan of study for a B.S. degree in physics.
- Course Requirement: Physics students completing the Professional Preparation or Space Physics Areas of Emphasis are required to complete two semesters of advanced lab (PHYS 341L and PHYS 342L). Students completing the Computational Physics Areas of Emphasis only need to complete one semester of PHYS 341L. Students completing the Physics Teaching Area of Emphasis are required to complete PHYS 376L in place of PHYS 341L.
- Benchmark Expectations: For details, go to the Physics admissions tab.
Curriculum Requirements
| University Requirements | 53 | |
| ECAS B.S. Requirements | 4 | |
| Department Requirements | 20 | |
| Physics Major Requirements | 43 | |
| Total Hours | 120 | |
University Requirements
| General Education Foundations (GEF) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 (31-37 Credits) | ||
| Outstanding GEF Requirements 1, 4, 5, 6, and 7 | 18 | |
| PHYS 191 | First-Year Seminar | 1 |
| General Electives | 34 | |
| Total Hours | 53 | |
ECAS Bachelor of Science Requirements
| Global Studies and Diversity Requirement | ||
| College Mathematics Requirement | 4 | |
| Calculus 1a with Precalculus and Calculus 1b with Precalculus | ||
or | ||
| Calculus 1 | ||
| Science Requirement: | ||
See above (may overlap with GEF and major requirements) | ||
| Total Hours | 4 | |
Departmental Requirements
| STEM FOUNDATIONS | ||
| Science Requirement: | 8 | |
Select one Science Area: | ||
| BIOLOGY: | ||
| Principles of Biology and Principles of Biology Laboratory | ||
| Introductory Physiology and Introductory Physiology Laboratory | ||
| CHEMISTRY: select one pair | ||
| Survey of Chemistry 1 and Survey of Chemistry 1 Laboratory | ||
| Survey of Chemistry 2 and Survey of Chemistry 2 Laboratory | ||
| or: | ||
| Fundamentals of Chemistry 1 and Fundamentals of Chemistry 1 Laboratory | ||
| Fundamentals of Chemistry 2 and Fundamentals of Chemistry 2 Laboratory | ||
| COMPUTER SCIENCE: | ||
| Introduction to Computer Science and Introduction to Data Structures | ||
| GEOLOGY: | ||
| Planet Earth and Planet Earth Laboratory | ||
| and: | ||
| Earth Through Time and Earth Through Time Laboratory | ||
| or | ||
| Physical Oceanography | ||
| or | ||
| Fossils and Evolution | ||
| Mathematics Requirement: | 12 | |
| Calculus 2 | ||
| Multivariable Calculus | ||
| Elementary Differential Equations | ||
| Total Hours | 20 | |
Physics Major Requirements
| Foundation Courses | 8 | |
| General Physics 1 and General Physics 1 Laboratory | ||
| General Physics 2 and General Physics 2 Laboratory | ||
| Physics Advanced Level Courses | 19 | |
| Oscillations and Thermal Physics | ||
| Introductory Modern Physics | ||
| Theoretical Mechanics 1 | ||
| Electricity and Magnetism 1 | ||
| Introductory Quantum Mechanics | ||
Any additional ASTR or PHYS course at the 300 level or above | ||
| Area of Emphasis | 13 | |
| Select one area of Emphasis | ||
| Capstone Requirement: | 3 | |
| Senior Thesis | ||
| Total Hours | 43 | |
Areas of Emphasis Offered:
Computational Physics
| CORE COURSES: | 10 | |
| Computational Physics | ||
| Advanced Physics 1 Laboratory | ||
| Advanced Physics Laboratory 2 (2 credits) * | ||
| Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics | ||
| ELECTIVES: | 3 | |
Select one of the following courses: | ||
| Introduction to Digital Logic Design | ||
| File and Data Structures | ||
| Discrete Mathematics | ||
| Introduction to Software Engineering | ||
| Introduction to Programming and Computational Mathematics | ||
| Total Hours | 13 | |
- *
Students may substitute any ASTR or PHYS courses at the 300 level or above. Only 3 credits of PHYS 490, 491, 495 may be applied to major requirements.
Suggested Plan of Study
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| PHYS 191 | 1 | ENGL 101 (F1) | 3 |
| F4 | 3 | CS 111 (B.S. First Area 2) | 4 |
| CS 110 (B.S. First Area 1) | 4 | MATH 156 (B.S. Second Area 1; F8) | 4 |
| MATH 155 (F3) | 4 | PHYS 111 & 111L (B.S. Third Area 1; F2) | 4 |
| General Elective | 3 | ||
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| ENGL 102 (F1) | 3 | F6 | 3 |
| F5 | 3 | MATH 261 | 4 |
| MATH 251 (B.S. Second Area 2) | 4 | PHYS 314 | 4 |
| PHYS 112 & 112L (B.S. Third Area 2; F8) | 4 | General Elective | 1 |
| General Elective | 1 | General Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| CPE 271 | 3 | CS 210 | 4 |
| PHYS 312 | 3 | PHYS 332 (or Elective) | 3 |
| PHYS 331 | 3 | PHYS 333 | 3 |
| PHYS 341L | 2 | F8 | 3 |
| ECAS Glo. Stu. & Div. Req. (F7) | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| 14 | 16 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| CS 220 | 3 | PHYS 461 | 3 |
| PHYS 301 | 3 | PHYS 496 or CS 481 | 3 |
| PHYS 334 (or Elective) | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| PHYS 451 | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Total credit hours: 120 | |||
NOTE: Students in this AoE will need to have completed either (a) CHEM 231 (or CHEM 233 and CHEM 233L) as a prerequisite for AGBI 410 or (b) CHEM 233 and CHEM 233L as prerequisites for BIOC 339
Medical Physics
| BIOC 339 | Introduction to Biochemistry | 3 |
| or AGBI 410 | Introductory Biochemistry | |
| BIOL 115 & 115L | Principles of Biology and Principles of Biology Laboratory | 4 |
| PHYS 326 | Medical Imaging Physics | 3 |
| PHYS 341L | Advanced Physics 1 Laboratory | 2 |
| Total Hours | 12 | |
Suggested Plan of Study
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| PHYS 191 | 1 | ENGL 101 (F1) | 3 |
| F4 | 3 | CHEM 116 & 116L (B.S. First Area 2; F8) | 4 |
| CHEM 115 & 115L (B.S. First Area 1; F2) | 4 | MATH 156 (B.S. Second Area 1; F8) | 4 |
| MATH 155 (F3) | 4 | PHYS 111 & 111L (B.S. Third Area; F8) | 4 |
| General Elective | 3 | ||
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| ENGL 102 (F1) | 3 | F6 | 3 |
| F5 | 3 | F7 | |
| MATH 251 (B.S. Second Area 2) | 4 | MATH 261 | 4 |
| PHYS 112 & 112L (B.S. Third Area 2; F8) | 4 | PHYS 314 | 4 |
| General Elective | 1 | General Elective | 4 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| BIOL 115 & 115L | 4 | BIOL 117 & 117L | 4 |
| PHYS 312 | 3 | PHYS 332 (or Elective) | 3 |
| PHYS 331 | 3 | PHYS 333 | 3 |
| PHYS 341L | 2 | General Elective | 4 |
| General Elective | 4 | ||
| 16 | 14 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| CHEM 233 & 233L | 4 | PHYS 326 | 3 |
| PHYS 334 (or Elective) | 3 | PHYS 461 | 3 |
| PHYS 451 | 3 | PHYS 496 | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| General Elective | 2 | General Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Total credit hours: 120 | |||
Physics Teaching Area of Emphasis
| CORE COURSE: | 3 | |
| Research Methods Laboratory | ||
| Select one option: | 10 | |
| CHEMISTRY OPTION: | ||
| Introductory Analytical Chemistry and Introductory Analytical Chemistry Laboratory | ||
| Physical Chemistry 1 and Physical Chemistry 1 Laboratory | ||
| Teaching Practicum (2 credits required) | ||
| MATHEMATICS OPTION: | ||
| Inquiry-Based Lesson Design | ||
| Teaching Mathematics: Secondary School | ||
| Foundations, Functions and Regression Models | ||
| Teaching Practicum (3 credits required) | ||
| Total Hours | 13 | |
Suggested Plan of Study for the B.S. in Physics with an Area of Emphasis in Teaching
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| F6 | 3 | ENGL 101 (F1) | 3 |
| CHEM 115 & 115L (ECAS B.S. First Area 1; F2B) | 4 | CHEM 116 & 116L (ECAS B.S. First Area 2; F8) | 4 |
| MATH 155 (F3) | 4 | MATH 156 (GEF 8; B.S. Second Area 1; F8) | 4 |
| General Elective | 1 | PHYS 111 (ECAS B.S. Third Area 1; F8) | 4 |
| PHYS 191 (First Year Experience) | 1 | ||
| General Elective | 2 | ||
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| F4 | 3 | ECAS Glob. & Div. Studies Req; F7 | 3 |
| ENGL 102 (F1) | 3 | MATH 261 | 4 |
| MATH 251 (B.S. Second Area 2) | 4 | PHYS 314 | 4 |
| PHYS 112 (ECAS B.S. Third Area 2) | 4 | General Elective | 3 |
| General Elective | 1 | General Elective | 1 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| PHYS Teaching AoE Course 1 | 4 | PHYS Teaching AoE Course 2 | 4 |
| PHYS 312 | 3 | PHYS 376L | 3 |
| PHYS 331 | 3 | PHYS 332 (or Elective)* | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | PHYS 333 | 3 |
| General Elective | 2 | General Elective | 2 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| F5 | 3 | PHYS 496 | 3 |
| PHYS 334 (or Elective) | 3 | PHYS 461 | 3 |
| PHYS 451 | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| PHYS 490 | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Total credit hours: 120 | |||
- *
May also be satisfied by 300 or 400 level PHYS elective or MATH 318.
Professional Preparation Area of Emphasis
| CORE COURSES: | 10 | |
| Theoretical Mechanics 2 | ||
or PHYS 334 | Electricity and Magnetism | |
| Advanced Physics 1 Laboratory | ||
| Advanced Physics Laboratory 2 (2 credits) | ||
| Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics | ||
| ELECTIVES: | 3 | |
Select one course from the list: * | ||
| Computational Physics | ||
| Optics | ||
| Medical Imaging Physics | ||
| Theoretical Mechanics 2 | ||
or PHYS 334 | Electricity and Magnetism | |
| Quantum Mechanics 2 | ||
| Solid State Physics | ||
| Plasma Physics | ||
| Teaching Practicum | ||
| Astrophysics 1 | ||
| Astrophysics 2 | ||
| Observational Astronomy | ||
| General Relativity | ||
| Total Hours | 13 | |
- *
No more than 6 hours combined of ASTR/PHYS 490, 491, 494, 495, or 497 may be used to fulfill major requirements (AoE and core requirements).
Suggested Plan of Study
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| PHYS 191 | 1 | ENGL 101 (F1) | 3 |
| F4 | 3 | B.S. First Area 2 | 4 |
| B.S. First Area 1; F2 | 4 | MATH 156 (B.S. Second Area 1; F8) | 4 |
| MATH 155 (F3) | 4 | PHYS 111 (Third Area 1; F8) | 4 |
| General Elective | 3 | ||
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| ENGL 102 (F1) | 3 | F6 | 3 |
| F5 | 3 | MATH 261 | 4 |
| MATH 251 (B.S. Second Area 2) | 4 | PHYS 314 | 4 |
| PHYS 112 (B.S. Third Area 2; F8) | 4 | General Elective | 1 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| 17 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| PHYS 331 | 3 | PHYS 332 (or Elective) | 3 |
| PHYS 341L | 2 | PHYS 333 | 3 |
| ECAS Glob. Stu. and Div. Req. (F7) | 3 | PHYS 341L | 2 |
| General Elective | 4 | Physics or Astronomy Elective 1 | 3 |
| PHYS 312 | 3 | General Elective | 1 |
| General Elective | 3 | ||
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| PHYS 334 (or Elective) | 3 | PHYS 461 | 3 |
| PHYS 451 | 3 | PHYS 496 | 3 |
| Math Elective | 3 | Physics or Astronomy Elective 3 | 3 |
| Physics or Astronomy Elective 2 | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 1 |
| 15 | 13 | ||
| Total credit hours: 120 | |||
Space Physics
| CORE COURSES: | 9 | |
| Astrophysics 1 | ||
or PHYS 481 | Plasma Physics | |
| Advanced Physics 1 Laboratory | ||
| Advanced Physics Laboratory 2 (1 credit) | ||
| Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics | ||
| ELECTIVES: * | 4 | |
| Advanced Physics Laboratory 2 (1 credit) | ||
| Computational Physics | ||
| Optics | ||
| Theoretical Mechanics 2 | ||
| Electricity and Magnetism | ||
| Quantum Mechanics 2 | ||
| Astrophysics 2 | ||
| Observational Astronomy | ||
| General Relativity | ||
| Introduction to Electrical Engineering and Introduction to Electrical Engineering Laboratory | ||
| Total Hours | 13 | |
- *
Only a total of 3 credits of PHYS 490, 491, 495 may count toward major requirements.
Suggested Plan of Study
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| PHYS 191 | 1 | ENGL 101 (F1) | 3 |
| F4 | 3 | CS 111 (B.S. First Area 2) | 4 |
| CS 110 (B.S. First Area 1) | 4 | MATH 156 (F8) | 4 |
| MATH 155 (F3) | 4 | PHYS 111 (B.S. Third Area 1; F2) | 4 |
| General Elective | 3 | ||
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| ENGL 102 (F1) | 3 | F6 | 3 |
| F5 | 3 | F7 | 3 |
| MATH 251 (B.S Second Area 1) | 4 | MATH 261 | 4 |
| PHYS 112 (B.S. Third Area 2; F8) | 4 | PHYS 314 | 4 |
| General Elective | 1 | General Elective | 1 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| EE 221 & EE 222 | 4 | PHYS 321 | 3 |
| PHYS 312 | 3 | PHYS 332 (or General Elective) | 3 |
| PHYS 331 | 3 | PHYS 333 | 3 |
| PHYS 341L | 2 | PHYS 341L | 2 |
| F8 | 3 | General Elective | 4 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| ASTR 367 | 3 | PHYS 461 | 3 |
| PHYS 334 (or General Elective) | 3 | PHYS 481 or ASTR 368 | 3 |
| PHYS 451 | 3 | PHYS 496 | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 | General Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Total credit hours: 120 | |||
Major Learning Outcomes
Physics B.S.
Upon successful completion of the B.S. degree, Physics majors will demonstrate:
- An understanding of and ability to solve basic conceptual and quantitative problems in theoretical mechanics, electricity and magnetism, quantum mechanics, and thermodynamics.
- A range of effective strategies, both written and oral, to communicate physics theories, processes, and results.
- An ability to develop experiments to test basic or applied research questions, to perform accurate experimental measurements, and to critically evaluate others’ answers to research questions.