Bachelor of Science in Physics
The bachelor of science program includes appropriate course work in physics to prepare students for employment or graduate work in a variety of physics-related fields. Students are encouraged to speak to their advisor to select elective courses that will best meet their career needs. The BS in Physics requires a total of 75 units listed below; of those 7 units count towards the university's General Education requirements.
Departmental Honors
To be awarded departmental honors in physics a student must:
- Achieve at least a 3.5 minimum grade point average in courses required for the major taken at California State University, San Bernardino and at least a 3.0 grade point average overall;
- Conduct advanced research on a topic approved by a faculty member who will serve as project director;
- Obtain written approval upon successful completion of the project from the project director and the chair, and present the results of the research to the department or at a research conference, and/or publish the results in a peer-reviewed scientific journal.
Requirements (75 units)
Total units required for graduation: 120
Requirements for the B.S. in Physics
(Program Code: PHYS)
| Lower-division requirements (38) | ||
| CHEM 2100 | General Chemistry I | 4 |
| CHEM 2100L | General Chemistry I Laboratory | 1 |
| MATH 2210 | Calculus I | 4 |
| MATH 2220 | Calculus II | 4 |
| MATH 2310 | Applied Linear Algebra | 4 |
| MATH 2320 | Multivariable Calculus | 4 |
| PHYS 1500 | Tools for Physicists | 3 |
| PHYS 2500 | General Physics I | 4 |
| PHYS 2500L | General Physics I Lab | 1 |
| PHYS 2510 | General Physics II | 4 |
| PHYS 2510L | General Physics II Lab | 1 |
| PHYS 2600L | Introduction to Electronics | 1 |
| PHYS 2700 | Modern Physics | 3 |
| Upper-division requirements (37) | ||
| PHYS 3100 | Mathematical Methods of Physics | 4 |
| PHYS 3200 | Classical Mechanics | 4 |
| PHYS 3300 | Computational Physics | 3 |
| PHYS 3400 | Electricity & Magnetism | 3 |
| PHYS 3500 | Statistical and Thermal Physics | 4 |
| PHYS 3800 | Intermediate Physics Laboratory | 2 |
| PHYS 4400 | Electricity & Magnetism II | 3 |
| PHYS 4700 | Quantum Mechanics | 4 |
| PHYS 4800 | Senior Thesis | 2 |
| Eight or more units chosen from upper-division physics courses selected with the approval of the department: | 8 | |
| Data Acquisition and Control | ||
| Electronics | ||
PHYS 4851-4853 | Special Topics in Physics | |
PHYS 4851L-4852L | Special Topics in Physics Laboratory | |
| Mathematical Methods of Physics II | ||
| Optics | ||
| Solid State Physics | ||
| Quantum Mechanics II | ||
PHYS 5751-5753 | Internship (max 3 units) | |
PHYS 5851-5853 | Special Topics in Physics | |
PHYS 5851L-5852L | Special Topics in Physics Laboratory | |
PHYS 5951-5953 | Independent Study (max 3 unit) | |
| Astrophysics of Planetary Systems | ||
| Astrophysics of Galaxies and Cosmology | ||
| Total Units | 75 | |