That's pretty broad, but so is a physics degree. Physics majors of course most often go into scientific or technical fields (like optics, superconductivity, nanotechnology, new energy methods, etc.), but it is a very flexible degree. Physics majors go on to careers in biology, law, financial firms, teaching, and other areas 鈥� basically anywhere there are difficult problems to solve.
Physics provides a background for numerous scientific career fields, including:
91成人导航's Department of Physics and Astronomy is smaller than departments at larger research-focused schools, which means we get to know you on an individual basis. We know your personal strengths, needs and interests. In larger departments at other universities, the faculty work primarily with their graduate students, leaving undergraduates at a distance.聽We work closely with our undergraduate students, mentoring them through the most formative time in their career.
Louis Johnson graduated from 91成人导航 with a BS in physics. He conducted research at the National Center for Astrophysics in Trieste, Italy聽where he studied quasars聽and had the opportunity to spend a summer at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, paid for entirely by the National Science Foundation. Johnson is currently enrolled in a bridge program at Princeton University in preparation for graduate school in astrophysics.聽
The faculty in the Department of Physics and Astronomy are exceptional teachers and world famous researchers in their fields of study, selected to become members of our department by the most rigorous standards.聽Physics professors are active researchers in astrophysics, astronomy, planetary science, particle physics and computational science.
Much like the eternal question鈥攚hich came first: the chicken or the egg? 鈥攕cientists are debating how galaxies can exist if they do not have any dark matter, the mysterious substance thought to compose up to 27% of the makeup of the universe.
This is one of the questions 91成人导航 physics professor Elisa Toloba, with the support of her students, is trying to answer by analyzing galaxies in the Virgo Cluster. The team has found that some ultra-diffuse galaxies, which have extremely low luminosity, may appear to be dark-matter free.
Our small size does not limit our ability to expose students to cutting-edge research. Students in the Department of Physics and Astronomy have numerous ways to get involved in physics activities. Students can work on projects outside the classroom to experience the science of physics. Our faculty are world renowned for their research into supermassive black hole formation at the center of galaxies, characterizing Earth-sized exoplanets, discovering new galaxies with unexpected properties and testing particle physics models with supercomputer simulations.
Because of our small size we can work closely with our undergraduate students and give them opportunities to participate in research. The physics faculty have won more than $900,000 in external funding to support their research.
The offices, laboratories and classrooms of the physics and astronomy department occupy Olson Hall. Labs are equipped with modern facilities for courses in optics solid state physics, advanced experiments, as well as for the Introductory Physics, Music, and Astronomy courses. Equipment includes a 2.3 meter radio telescope for student use. The department has two computer labs with PCs, and a scientific computing (unix) lab.
Recently, physics and astronomy department faculty and students went on a field trip for night-time viewing at the Lick Observatory on Mount Hamilton near San Jose. The observatory is owned and run by the University of California, thanks to our faculty Elisa Toloba and Guillermo Barro we had permission for a private tour.
We've recently hosted talks by Chris McKay from the NASA Ames Research Center on terraforming Mars by Prof Raja Guhathakurta from UC Santa Cruz on studying galaxy formation as well as career advice for undergraduate students, and by Tomer Tal (Ph.D. Yale) from Chegg on data science and machine learning.
Undergraduate students Kadri Bin Mohamad Nizam and Justin Barber presented posters on their research at the American Astronomical Society meeting in Seattle in January 2019. Katie Ram, Nina Madsen and Katie Christensen were at the Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics in Los Angeles last year.
You can聽choose to focus your聽studies further by selecting a concentration聽for your Bachelor of Science degree. Concentrations聽build on the research strengths of the physics faculty to offer聽one-on-one activities and undergraduate research opportunities. A student declaring a concentration in one of the following areas must take two specific upper division electives聽and will have advanced laboratory and senior thesis work related to the topic of their concentration.
Three聽concentrations聽are available:
Using supercomputers to simulate the physics of complex phenomena
The study of planets, stars, galaxies and the large scale structure of the universe
The interface of math and physics (for the theoretically inclined)
Thanks to our $1 million endowment, the Department of Physics and Astronomy awards between $40,000-$50,000 in scholarships each year. Students in their second year and beyond are eligible. The physics faculty chooses awardees based on merit. Typical scholarships are $8,000.
Data science is one of the fastest-growing career fields. 91成人导航 offers a minor in data science to help students be more prepared for a digital world that is constantly changing.
This degree is jointly offered with 91成人导航's School of Engineering and Computer Science. 91成人导航 is聽one of only 21 schools in the United States聽with an accredited bachelor's degree in engineering-physics.
The PacNoyce Scholars Program provides scholarships and other support for STEM majors at 91成人导航 who become teachers in high-needs school districts, such as Stockton.
You could be eligible for the Robert Noyce Teachers Scholarship worth up to $13,750 a year, for juniors and seniors or $20,000 for the final MA/teaching credential year.
In addition to training the current generation of college students to be physicists, there is a great need in the United States聽for highly qualified secondary (8-12th grade) physical science teachers who will prepare the following generation of scientists. The Bachelor of Arts degree in Physics includes slightly fewer specialized upper division courses, so that the student interested in becoming a teacher can focus on building a strong content foundation across the physical sciences by taking additional courses in chemistry and geosciences, as well as courses in education though the 91成人导航鈥檚聽Benerd College.
