Sep 20, 2024  
Graduate Record 2005-2006 
    
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Graduate Record 2005-2006 [ARCHIVED RECORD]

Physics

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Degree Requirements

The Master’s Program

Three master’s-level degrees are offered in the Physics Department. Candidates for the M.S. degree must pass thirty credits of courses approved by the graduate adviser, present a thesis, and defend it in an oral examination. Offered primarily for secondary or community college teachers, the M.A. degree requirements depend on the candidate’s background and are developed with the departmental graduate program committee. The M.A.P.E. (Master of Arts in Physics Education) degree is designed to provide middle school physical science and high school physics teachers with a strong background in physics. Courses numbered in the 600s are taken to satisfy the requirements for this degree. Typically students take two courses in the summer in residence at UVa and one distance learning course in the academic year totaling ten credits each year to complete the required thirty credits in two and a half years.

The Ph.D. Program

Unless credit for advanced standing is given by the departmental advisor, Ph.D. candidates must pass 12 departmentally required courses (seven specified “core courses” and five electives) in addition to six elective courses passed with a letter grade (not S or U) and six more courses, including non-topical research.

Qualifying Examination

Candidates for the Ph.D. degree must pass a qualifying examination in the subjects of classical mechanics, electricity and magnetism, quantum mechanics, and statistical mechanics. The material for this examination is covered in the seven core courses, which should be completed before the start of the fourth semester.

Research and Thesis Requirements

Ph.D. candidates must present a dissertation on their research, satisfactory to their research advisor, and defend it in an oral examination.

The Engineering Physics Program

The Department of Physics also offers an engineering physics degree program jointly administrated with the School of Graduate Engineering and Applied Science. The engineering physics program offers the flexibility of pursuing an advanced degree in interdisciplinary fields defined by the student. Students seeking the Ph.D. degree in this program must satisfy the engineering physics degree course requirements: two each in physics and engineering and one in mathematics. In addition, students must also satisfy any other general requirements listed in the School of Graduate Engineering chapter of this Record. Students must choose a research advisor and declare a concentration in the Engineering School within the fall semester of their first year. The qualifying examination for a Ph.D. consists of an oral examination following a written examination of three components; students must take at least one component in physics and one in engineering.

Course Descriptions

Note: The courses listed below are given as the needs of students require.

Professional Development Courses for Teachers

Note: Courses numbered in the 600s are offered for the professional development of K-12 teachers to improve competency in physics and to assist them in obtaining endorsement or recertification. In the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, these courses count for degree credit only for the M.A.P.E. degree.

Advanced Graduate Courses

Courses primarily for students seeking M.A., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in physics.

Physics Colloquium

The faculty and graduate students meet weekly for the presentation by a visiting speaker of recent work in the physical sciences.

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