Admission to the Program

Formal admission to the major requires a grade point average of 2.00 (on a 4.00 scale) and departmental approval. 

University Requirements

• A total of 120 credit hours 
• 6 credit hours of college writing 
• 3 credit hours of college mathematics or the equivalent by examination 

General Education Requirements

• A total of ten courses, consisting of one foundation course and one second-level course in an approved sequence from each of the five curricular areas 
• No more than 6 credit hours may be taken in the same discipline 

Tracks

Chemical Physics, Computational Physics, or Traditional Physics 

Major Requirements

• 57 credit hours with grades of C or better 

Course Requirements

Core (45 credit hours)

• CSC-280 Introduction to Computer Science I (4) 
• MATH-221 Calculus I (4) 
• MATH-222 Calculus II (4) 
• MATH-313 Calculus III (4) 
• MATH-321 Differential Equations (3) 
• PHYS-110 University Physics I 5:1 (4) 
• PHYS-210 University Physics II 5:2 (4) 

(PHYS-110 and PHYS-210 may be waived for students with exceptional high school preparation) 

• PHYS-365 Waves and Optics (3) 
• PHYS-370 Modern Physics (3) 
• PHYS-430 Classical Mechanics (3) 
• PHYS-440 Experimental Physics (3) 
• PHYS-450 Electricity and Magnetism (3) 
• PHYS-470 Introduction to Quantum Mechanics (3) 

Tracks (12 credit Hours)

Chemical Physics

Prerequisite: CHEM-210 General Chemistry II 5:2 (4) 

• 12 credit hours from the following: 

CHEM-310 Organic Chemistry I (3) 

CHEM-312 Organic Chemistry I Laboratory (1) 

CHEM-320 Organic Chemistry II (3) 

CHEM-322 Organic Chemistry II Laboratory (1) 

CHEM-350 Quantitative Analysis (3) 

CHEM-351 Quantitative Analysis Laboratory (2) 

CHEM-410 Biophysical Chemistry (3) 

CHEM-411 Biophysical Chemistry Laboratory (1) 

CHEM-460 Instrumental Analysis (3) 

CHEM-461 Instrumental Analysis Laboratory (2) 

Computational Physics

• 12 credit hours from the following: 

CSC-281 Introduction to Computer Science II (3) 

CSC-330 Organization of Computer Systems (4) 

CSC-432 Introduction to Simulation and Modeling (3) 

CSC-520 Algorithms and Data Structures (3) 

CSC-543 Object-Oriented Analysis and Design (3) 

Traditional Physics

• 12 credit hours from the following: 

MATH-310 Linear Algebra (3) 

MATH-550 Complex Analysis (3) 

MATH-551 Partial Differential Equations (3) 

PHYS-220 Astronomy 5:2 (3) 

PHYS-230 Changing Views of the Universe 5:2 (3) 

PHYS-305 Acoustics (3) 

PHYS-312 Electronics I (3) 

PHYS-313 Electronics II (3) 

PHYS-322 Electronics Lab I (2) 

PHYS-323 Electronics Lab II (2) 

University Honors Program

All University Honors students must complete at least 12 credit hours of advanced-level (300-level and above) Honors courses including a 3 to 6 credit hour Honors Senior Capstone Project. Students may graduate with University Honors in the major if they complete at least 12 advanced-level Honors courses including the Senior Capstone Project in the department. Each department has three levels of University Honors requirements: Level I Options (100-200-level Honors classes); Level II Options (300-level and above Honors classes); and Level III Options (Honors Senior Capstone). The department Honors coordinator advises students in the University Honors Program regarding departmental options. For more information, go to www.american.edu/academic.depts/honors/ . 

Combined Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees

American University offers students the opportunity to earn both undergraduate and graduate degrees through its accelerated bachelor’s/master’s programs. Undergraduate students may complete up to 3 credits for every 9 credits required for the graduate degree that may be applied to the requirements for both degree programs.  The department that oversees the graduate program the student enters will determine if the courses the undergraduate student completes will satisfy master’s degree requirements. 

Bachelor’s/master’s students must complete at least 18 in-residence credit hours at the graduate level after the bachelor’s degree is earned and  maintain continuous, sequential enrollment in the two programs. Students must finish the master’s degree requirements within three years from the date of first enrollment in the master’s program.