Bachelor of Arts (BA)
The Physics major is designed to give the student a broad and thorough understanding of the fundamentals of physics. Therefore, the emphasis is on this general understanding rather than on specialized skills, although some specialized courses are among the options open to the student. Those considering a physics major are urged to consult a departmental adviser early, in order to discuss the content of the major and also the opportunities after graduation. Recent graduates have entered graduate work in a number of scientific fields, and others have gone on to jobs in academic, industrial, and government laboratories.
Declaring the Major
Students may declare a physics major when all of the prerequisites for the major have been completed or their equivalent with a 2.0 grade-point average (GPA) in the prerequisites and a 2.0 GPA in all University courses. For further information regarding the prerequisites, please see the Major Requirements tab on this page.
The department will consider applications to declare a physics major throughout the academic year. Students (continuing and transfer) declaring must furnish a copy of their grade record or past transcripts which include the prerequisite courses or their equivalents. Students must have their records reviewed and have a departmental file prepared by the undergraduate advisors in 368 or 374 Physics North prior to seeing a faculty major adviser for departmental approval of the petition to declare a physics major. Students should be prepared to discuss a tentative schedule of their upper division courses.
Honors Program
Students with an overall grade point average (GPA) of 3.3 or higher in all courses in the major, upper division courses in the major, and all University courses may be admitted to the honors program. A major advisor should be consulted before the student's last year of residence. This program requires completion of the major, at least one semester of PHYSICS H190, and a senior thesis, PHYSICS H195A and PHYSICS H195B.
Minor Program
The department also offers a minor program in Physics. Students may petition for a minor in Physics from the time that the requirements are complete until the student graduates from the College of Letters & Science. Students who have completed the requirements for the minor will be required to furnish transcripts (official or unofficial) to the undergraduate advisors (in 368 or 374 Physics North) to show their work and GPA in physics and math. After completing a confirmation of minor program petition (available in 368 or 374 Physics North), the students will be directed to a faculty major adviser who will approve the completion of the minor program.
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The goal of the Physics major is to provide students with a broad understanding of the physical principles of the universe, to help them develop critical thinking and quantitative reasoning skills, to empower them to think creatively and critically about scientific problems and experiments, and to provide training for students planning careers in physics and in the physical sciences broadly defined including those whose interests lie in research, K-12 or college teaching, industrial jobs, or other sectors of society.
Physics majors complete a program which includes foundational lower division course work in math and physics and in-depth upper division course work. These topics are traditionally broadly divided into classical and modern physics. Some core topics, such as special relativity, classical optics, and classical thermodynamics, are covered only in lower division courses. Other topics, such as quantum mechanics, classical mechanics, statistical mechanics, thermodynamics, electricity and magnetism, and optics, are covered first at an introductory level in lower division and then at a more advanced level in the upper division courses. Advanced elective courses provide students the opportunity to further their knowledge in specific areas (such as atomic physics, condensed matter physics, optical properties, quantum computing, biophysics, astrophysics, particle physics). A two-semester upper division laboratory course provides additional training in electronic instrumentation, circuits, computer interfacing to experiments, independent project design, and advanced laboratory techniques experiments. This laboratory course also provides the capstone experience to the core courses, bringing the knowledge gained in different courses together and making the connection between theoretical knowledge taught in textbooks/homework problems and the experimental foundations of this knowledge. Activities outside the classroom, such as independent research or study, allow students to further develop their knowledge and understanding.
A student graduating from Berkeley with a major in physics will understand classical and modern physics (as outlined in the course requirements below) and will also acquire the skills to apply principles to new and unfamiliar problems. Their understanding should include the ability to analyze physical problems (often posed as word problems), be able to derive and prove equations that describe the physics of the universe, understand the meaning and limitations of these equations, and have both physical and numerical insight into physical problems (e.g., be able to make order-of-magnitude estimates, analyze physical situations by application of general principles as well as by textbook type calculations). They will also have developed basic laboratory, library, and computational skills, be familiar with important historical experiments and what physics they revealed, and be able to make both written and oral presentations on physics problems posed to them. At graduation, physics majors will have a set of fundamental competencies that are knowledge-based, performance/skills-based, and affective.
Learning Goals for the Major
Graduates will have the following:
- Mastered a broad set of knowledge concerning the fundamentals in the basic areas of physics (quantum mechanics, classical mechanics, statistical mechanics, thermodynamics, electricity and magnetism, optics, and special relativity). This does not refer to knowledge about specific facts, but rather to a working knowledge of fundamental concepts that can then be applied in many different ways to understand or predict what nature does.
- An understanding of the physical principles required to analyze a physical question or topic, including those not previously seen, and both quantitative and qualitative physical insight into these principles in order to understand or predict what happens. This includes understanding what equations and numerical physical constants are needed to describe and analyze fundamental physics problems.
- A set of basic physical constants that enable their ability to make simple numerical estimates of physical properties of the universe and its constituents.
- An understanding of how modern electronic instrumentation works, and how both classical and modern experiments are used to reveal the underlying physical principals of the universe and its constituents.
- An understanding of how to use computers in data acquisition and processing and how to use available software as a tool in data analysis.
- An understanding of modern library search tools used to locate and retrieve scientific information.
Skills
Graduates will have the following abilities:
- Solve problems competently by identifying the essential parts of a problem and formulating a strategy for solving the problem. Estimate the numerical solution to a problem. Apply appropriate techniques to arrive at a solution, test the correctness of the solution, and interpret the results.
- Explain the physics problem and its solution in both words and appropriately specific equations to both experts and non-experts.
- Understand the objective of a physics laboratory experiment, properly carry out the experiments, and appropriately record and analyze the results.
- Use standard laboratory equipment, modern instrumentation, and classical techniques to carry out experiments.
- Know how to design, construct, and complete a science-based independent project (specifically in the area of electronics).
- Know and follow the proper procedures and regulations for safely working in a lab.
- Communicate the concepts and results of their laboratory experiments through effective writing and oral communication skills.
Affective
Graduates will be able to do the following:
- Successfully pursue career objectives in graduate school or professional schools, in a scientific career in government or industry, in a teaching career, or in a related career.
- Think creatively about scientific problems and their solutions, to design experiments, and to constructively question results they are presented with, whether these results are in a newspaper, in a classroom, or elsewhere.
