Program Overview

Engineering Physics Minor Program

The Engineering Physics Minor Program is designed to address the needs of students seeking innovative careers in today’s technological age. This program provides students with a fundamental knowledge of physics, together with problem-solving skills, and an understanding of engineering.

Program Description

Interdisciplinary areas in physical sciences in engineering, such as energy, environment, materials, microelectronics, and photonics, promise to become increasingly relevant in the twenty-first century. The program allows students to keep their options open between physical sciences and engineering.

Career Opportunities

Following completion of the engineering physics program, students typically enter careers in engineering, applied science, or applied physics through research, teaching, or entrepreneurial engineering. Past graduates have also pursued other careers as diverse as medicine, business, and law.

Program Structure

The program offers a unique combination of engineering, mathematics, and physics and is accredited for all participants by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. It is directed towards students who have interest and ability in both engineering and physics.

Requirements for Engineering Majors

For engineering majors, in addition to courses in those subjects fundamental to the student’s field of interest, the program requires courses in:

• Quantum mechanics
• Electromagnetism
• Statistical mechanics
• Thermodynamics
• Condensed matter physics
• Mathematical physics
• Complex analysis
• Partial differential equations

Requirements for Physics Majors

For physics majors, the program requires courses in:

• Engineering design
• Specialization in such topics as:
  • Solid-state electronics
  • Fluid mechanics
  • Optics/optoelectronics
  • Computers and computational methods
  • Control theory
  • A variety of other applied disciplines

Admission Criteria

Any student who satisfactorily completes the B.S.E. freshman year program or its equivalent is eligible for admission to the program. Engineering students entering the program are strongly encouraged to complete Physics 203, 208, and Mathematics 201, 202 or their equivalents by the end of the sophomore year.

Awards

An engineering physics minor is awarded upon graduation to students successfully completing the program. Exceptionally outstanding students are awarded the Jeffery O. Kephart ’80 Prize (maximum of one per year).