Curriculum
What can my four years at Juniata offer?
In addition to courses aimed at Physics and science majors we also offer a number of courses for those with a general interest in the social and cultural applications of physics, accessible to any student:
- Astronomy
- Musical Acoustics
- Nuclear Threat
Typical Progression
The typical progression for a Physics major involves the academic work outlined below. Students with programs involving multiple disciplines, such as Physics/Secondary Education, would take a subset of the upper-level coursework in Physics and Mathematics while pursuing their coursework in the affiliated discipline:
Freshman Year
- Designed to provide a diverse foundation in physics along with the requisite mathematics needed for advanced coursework
- Physics Seminar
- Physics I with lab
- Physics II with lab
- Calculus I
- Calculus II
- Get involved in the Society of Physics Students, the Physics Club
Sophomore year
- Designed to advance student independence in research and expose students to theoretical breakthroughs leading to relativity and quantum mechanics
- Modern Physics with lab
- Electronics
- Physics Seminar
- Calculus III
- Differential Equations
- Pursue a summer research internship, present your research findings at a professional conference
Junior and Senior years
- The Junior year is also an opportune time to study abroad
- Physics preparation: Students focus gain in-depth knowledge in specific content areas of physics, typically selecting three or four of the following courses each academic year.
- Advanced Physics Laboratory; Classical Mechanics; Electromagnetism I and II; Mathematical Methods in Physics; Nuclear Physics; Optics; Physics Seminar; Quantum Mechanics; Statics and Dynamics (engineering prep); Thermodynamics
- Further preparation in Mathematics: Linear Algebra, and additional mathematics to complement your specific interests
- Pursue a summer research internship
- Apply for Sigma Pi Sigma, the national physics honorary
- Think about senior thesis research
- Present paper at national conference