The B.S. degree gives students an excellent grounding in the fundamentals of physics with training in theoretical, computational, and experimental treatments of physics principles, phenomena, and applications. Students are also encouraged to get involved in research activities within the department. This program prepares students for entry into graduate programs in physics and other scientific or engineering fields. It also opens the door to a broad range of employment options in the both the public and private sectors, including employment in industry and at national labs.
Degree Requirements
Program: BS-PHYS-1
The following courses must be completed in order to earn a B.S. in Physics.
A grade of "C-" or better must be earned in a prerequisite course in order to advance to the next course in the sequence. An overall GPA of 2.0 must be earned in the major in order for a student to graduate with a B.S. in Physics. Physics majors and minors may take a Physics class only two times. If a student has not achieved a minimum of a "C-" after the second attempt, the student may not repeat the class.
Physics majors with a chemical physics concentration may not double major or minor in chemistry.
In the Applied Physics concentration, students have three options. In option one they take a core set of Physics courses and labs; after consulting with an advisor and getting the approval of the chair, they choose electives from any technical area at Lewis (for example, Aviation, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Mathematics). The flexibility in this curriculum is advantageous to students who wish to create individual programs of study to suit their interests and career goals with approval of their advisors. The Applied Physics concentration is also an excellent option for students who want to pursue careers in interdisciplinary fields like computational physics or medical physics or who intend to enter graduate programs in Applied Physics or related fields.
Students in the Dual Degree Program administered jointly by Lewis University and The Illinois Institute of Technology may choose to pursue a B.S. degree in either Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering at IIT while earning at the same time a B.S. in Physics (Applied Physics concentration) from Lewis University.
I. Core Courses (41)
II. Concentration
A. Advanced Physics Concentration (32)
i. Complete the following courses (14):
ii. Choose one of the following courses (4):
iii. Choose one of the following Computational Physics courses (3):
iv. Choose one of the following Computation courses (3):
v. Select at least 8 credit hours from the following courses (8):
Select at least 8 additional hours of electives from the following list, up to 6 of which may be taken in Chemistry, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or Mathematics. Mathematics minors cannot use any 30000 or 40000 level Mathematics course to satisfy both this requirement and a Mathematics minor requirement:
- Any 30000 or 40000 level Physics courses not used to satisfy requirements in i-iv
- CHEM 11500, CHEM 11600, or any 20000, 30000, or 40000 level Chemistry courses
- Any 20000, 30000, or 40000 level Computer Engineering courses
- Any 20000, 30000, or 40000 level Computer Science courses
- Any 30000 or 40000 level Mathematics courses not used to satisfy requirements in i-iv
PHYS 37100 Workshop in Physics may be taken multiple times for credit if different topics are offered. Up to 2 credit hours may be applied toward completion of these elective credits.
PHYS 47000 Undergraduate Research may be taken multiple times for credit. Up to 6 credit hours may be applied toward completion of these elective credits.
PHYS 49800 Topics in Physics may be taken multiple times for credit if different topics are offered. Up to 9 credit hours may be applied toward completion of these elective credits.
PHYS 49900 Independent Study may be taken multiple times for credit. Up to 4 credit hours may be applied toward completion of these elective credits.
B. Applied Physics Concentration (32)
Concentration: APHY
i. Complete the following courses (4):
ii. Choose one of the following courses (4):
iii. Select one of the following Computation courses (3):
iv. Technical Electives (21)
The student chooses 21 additional credit hours of approved electives from Aviation, Chemistry, Biology, Computer Engineering, Computer Science (CPSC 20000 or higher), Data Science, Electrical Engineering, Mathematics, and/or Physics. At least 6 elective credit hours must be at the 30000-40000 level. All course prerequisites must be satisfied. Students interested in a particular applied area (for example, Computational Physics) can obtain a list of recommended courses from the Physics Department and take electives from that list. Or students may create an individualized set of technical electives approved by the student’s advisor and the Physics Department chair.
C. Chemical Physics Concentration (35)
Concentration: CHPH
i. Complete the following courses (26):
ii. Select at least 3 credit hours from the following:
iii. Select at least 6 credit hours from the following:
III. Advanced Writing Requirement
The advanced writing requirement of the General Education curriculum is satisfied by successful completion of: