Post on 07-Sep-2018
Undergraduate Physics
3-Mar-2012 1
Undergraduate Physics at the University of IllinoisAg d :Agenda:
•Welcome Dale Van Harlingen, Head•University housing overview Mari Anne Brocker•IEFX – Freshman Experience Bruce Litchfield•IEFX – Freshman Experience Bruce Litchfield•Break•Physics curriculum Kevin Pitts•Study abroad Mike Lanceloty•Parallel
• Parents: financial aid Katianna Lindley• Students: university life Matt Feickert, Meredith Staub
•Lunch – meet students and faculty•CARE Dana Tempel•Physics careers, research Kevin PittsQ ti d i d •Question and answer period
•Parallel• Tour PHYS 403 lab Prof. Eugene Colla• More Q&A
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• More Q&A•Adjourn
Welcome!Welcome! Physics at UIUC:
– Ranked #2 in the nation in undergraduate engineering physics
– Ranked #8 overall (two surveys)
– Other national rankings:– Other national rankings: #2 in condensed matter physics #8 in quantum information #10 in nuclear physics #12 in elementary particle
physics
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Tony Leggett receiving the Nobel Prize for Physics (2003)
Undergraduate Physics at the University of Illinoisat the University of Illinois
Toni PittsC di f R i i Ad i i d Coordinator of Recruiting, Advising, and Special Programs
Merissa JonesMerissa JonesAcademic Advisor
Kevin PittsKevin PittsProfessor of PhysicsAssociate Head for Undergraduate Programs
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OutlineOutline The Department
Undergraduate Degree Programs– Choices of Major– CoursesCourses
Student Groups
Undergraduate Research Opportunities– REU– Senior ThesisSenior Thesis
What can I do with a Physics Degree?
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By the numbersBy the numbers 60 faculty 290 graduate students 350 undergraduate students
$25M i t t f h $25M in grant support for research
We award We award– 65 Bachelor’s degrees/year– 40 Ph.D.’s per year
Average ACT score is 31
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Charles Slichter receiving the National Medal of Science (2008)
Areas of Research Astrophysics Atomic and Molecular Optics Biological Physics Complex Systems Complex Systems Condensed Matter Cosmology High-Energy Physics Nuclear Physics Physics Education Quantum Information
Campus centers:– Institute for Condensed Matter Theory – Center for the Physics of Living Cells
Cl h ti ith Close research ties with:– National Center for Supercomputer Applications (NCSA)– Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory– Argonne National Laboratory
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go e a o a a o a o y
Undergraduate Degree ProgramsUndergraduate Degree Programs Engineering Physics
– Offered through Engineering College
Science and Letters Physics– Virtually identical to Engineering Physics Virtually identical to Engineering Physics
Specialized Physics– Most flexible physics curriculum
Physics Teaching Option– Includes secondary education minor
(and teaching certification)(and teaching certification)
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Engineering PhysicsEngineering Physics Offered through College of Engineering 128 Hours required to graduate Curriculum features: “Elective Options”
[more on this in a minute]– [more on this in a minute]
Graduate school or industry track 3 years HS foreign language or 3 years HS foreign language or
3 college semesters satisfies language requirement
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LAS Science and Letters PhysicsLAS Science and Letters Physics Offered through College of Liberal Arts
d S iand Sciences Curriculum features: “Elective Options”
– [more on this in a minute][more on this in a minute]
120 hours required to graduate Graduate school or industry track 4 years of HS foreign language or
4th-semester college language satisfies language requirementlanguage requirement
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LAS Specialized PhysicsLAS Specialized Physics Offered through College of Liberal Arts
d S iand Sciences 126 hours required to graduate 4 years of HS foreign language or 4 years of HS foreign language or
4th-semester college language satisfies language requirement
“Option-oriented” curriculum (ideal for pre-med, pre-law, and physics related fields)related fields)
Very flexible in upper-level courses
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LAS vs EngineeringLAS vs. EngineeringQ : What’s the difference between LAS Science and
Letters and Engineering Physics?
A: Nothing in the physics + math curriculum.– LAS physics majors must pay the college of
engineering college surcharge. (They utilize all of the same equipment/infrastructure.)
LAS/Engineering have slightly different general education requirements.
LAS requires 4th semester of foreign language. Engineering requires a few more hours.g g q Is one “more prestigious” than another?
– Not for grad school…maybe in the job market?
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Degree RequirementsDegree Requirements “Core” Physics Courses “Core” Math courses
(+2 courses = math minor)
Supporting courses (Chem CS) Supporting courses (Chem, CS) General Education requirements Elective Options Elective Options Free electives
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Introductory CoursesIntroductory Courses Introductory sequence (3 semesters)
– PHYS 211 –- Mechanics– PHYS 212 -- Electricity and Magnetism– PHYS 213 -- Thermal Physics (half-semester)– PHYS 214 -- Waves and Quantum Physics (half-semester)– PHYS 225 –- Relativity and Math MethodsPHYS 225 –- Relativity and Math Methods
Notes:– Courses have calculus prerequisites– Take PHYS 225 the same semester you take Phys 212– PHYS 213 and 214 are two half-semester courses (for
practical purposes, it’s a single four hour course)
What if you change your mind?– Calculus and PHYS 211-214 are required for most
engineering majors.
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Introductory CoursesIntroductory Courses Introductory sequence (3 semesters)
– PHYS 211 -- Mechanics– PHYS 212 -- Electricity and Magnetism– PHYS 213 -- Thermal Physics (half-semester)– PHYS 214 -- Waves and Quantum Physics (half-semester)
Course format:– Lecture, discussion (interactive problem-solving), labs
Lectures are highly interactive using iClickers– Lectures are highly interactive using iClickers
New for fall 2011:Physics major-only discussion sections– Physics major-only discussion sections
– Register for one of these if you can, it’s ok if you can’t– Help to build a sense of community with our majors– Cover additional material when appropriate
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pp p
Advanced Courses
Classical Mechanics (2) – Biophysics
Some courses required, many are optional
– Classical Mechanics (2)– Electricity and Magnetism (2)– Thermal and Statistical Physics
Quantum Mechanics (2)
– Biophysics– Subatomic Physics– Atmospheric Dynamics– Electronic Circuits– Quantum Mechanics (2)
– Classical Physics Laboratory– Modern Physics Laboratory
Physics of Music Laboratory
– Electronic Circuits– Introduction to
Physics Research– Senior Thesis– Physics of Music Laboratory
– Condensed Matter Physics– Atomic Scale Simulations
Senior Thesis– Light (optics) – Independent Study
all courses offered every semester or every other semester
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other semester.
Elective OptionsElective Options Allows students to tailor curriculum to their needs
and interests.and interests. Examples:
– Professional Physics (this is the grad school track)– Astrophysicsop y– Biophysics– Bioengineering– Computational Physics– Materials Science– Physical Electronics– Earth Science
S i W iti– Science Writing– Pre-law– Pre-med– User defined
New options coming:•Nuclear physics•Energy/sustainability•Management
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– User defined Management•Atmospheric science•…
Recent user defined optionsRecent user defined options– Electrical Engineering Technical Option– Geology/Geophysics Geology/Geophysics – Pre-Optometry – Mathematical Physics – Prep for Grad School in Library SciencePrep for Grad School in Library Science– Economics – Acoustic Engineering – Atmospheric SciencesAtmospheric Sciences– Acoustics – Biomedical Engineering – Nuclear Physics Nuclear Physics – Sustainable Technology Commercialization
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PHYSICS
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PHYSICS
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Teaching OptionTeaching Option Offered through Liberal Arts and Sciences
i j ti ith th C ll f in conjunction with the College of Education
Must complete a secondary education Must complete a secondary education minor
Apply to Science and Letters Physics ( h ll i d i (then tell us you are interested in teaching option after admission)
Contact advisor Prof. Mats Selen Contact advisor Prof. Mats Selen (mats@illinois.edu)
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Academic AdvisingAcademic Advising Every major is assigned an advisor and a
f lt tfaculty mentor– Advisor is the expert on
courses/programs/graduation requirements– Mentor is the faculty member, expert on
research/areas of study/careers
Required to meet academic advisor and mentor until PHYS 325 is taken
We are working on some new programs to further aid the mentoring process.
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to further aid the mentoring process.
More on AdvisingMore on Advising Each student is assigned a faculty “mentor”
– Get to meet the mentor during first year– Degree to which you use the mentor is up to you
New for Fall 2011: we are going pair freshmen up with an upperclass student– They can help you learn the “things you need to
know”
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More About UsMore About UsCurricula/Programs:
http://physics illinois edu/undergrad/curricula asphttp://physics.illinois.edu/undergrad/curricula.asp
Course web pages:http://physics.illinois.edu/courses/p //p y / /
Academic advising:http://physics.illinois.edu/undergrad/advising.asp
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More about
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http://physics.illinois.edu/undergrad/posts.asp
PHYS 199REL The Relevance of Physics New course spring 2012 For Physics majors onlyy j y Discuss the societal relevance of physics…
– Energy, space travel, nuclear power, weapons, electricity light radiation climateelectricity, light, radiation, climate
…and the relevance to physics majors– Careers, funding, educastion
Project-based– Career project, poster project, position
papers videospapers, videos.
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Discovery Courses
Freshman-only courses
Enrollment limited to 19
Offered in many departments
Fall 2012– “Behavior of Complex Systems”– “Science and Pseudoscience”– “Physics of Electronic Musical Instruments”
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Summer registrationSummer registration We will help you choose your courses during
summer registration It helps to review our summer registration. It helps to review our sample schedule and look at the course material before you come.
– Follow the admitted student checklist. You will be able to Follow the admitted student checklist. You will be able to select the date for summer registration.
Make sure to complete all placement exams prior Make sure to complete all placement exams prior to coming. Take these exams seriously!!!
You will spend the morning with your college and You will spend the morning with your college and meet with us in the afternoon.
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Extracurricular ActivitiesExtracurricular ActivitiesPhysics Van
Society of Women in h
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Physics SocietyPhysics
Student GroupsStudent GroupsPhysics SocietySociety for Women in Physics (SWIP)Society for Women in Physics (SWIP)Physics Van
http://physics.illinois.edu/undergrad/student-groups.asp Speaker meetings Social gatherings Seminars
“H t t i t d h l”– “How to get into grad school”– “Careers in Physics”
Faculty research talks Pizza meetingsPizza meetings Informal dinner with faculty Engineering Open House Physics demonstrations
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Midwest Women in Physics Conferencey UIUC will host the January 2013 conference!! 200 women physics majors plus lots of p y j p
dignitaries. They’ll network, learn about careers, research and
graduate opportunities, discuss work/life balanceg pp , /
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Teaching OpportunitiesTeaching Opportunities Upper-class physics majors might have an
opportunity to teach!opportunity to teach! It’s a great learning experience It looks great on your resume/cv Teaching assistants receive stipend Teaching assistants receive stipend Typical teaching load is 2 laboratory sections per
semester (~8-10 hours/week) Our TA’s are good…75% are voted as “excellent” Our TA s are good…75% are voted as excellent
by their students!
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Undergraduate ResearchUndergraduate Research
On campus:– Work in a research lab
can earn individual study credit– Summer research through senior thesis project
Off campus– Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU)– 10 week summer research program– Offered at many schools
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PHYS 496/499 “Senior Thesis”PHYS 496/499 Senior Thesis
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Emphasis on research and communication (speaking/writing)
Intro to Physics ResearchIntro to Physics Research Explore research fields Presentations Journal Club
I t d ti t i tifi i ti Introduction to scientific communication Oral presentations Scientific writing Scientific writing Introduction to research basics Collaborations Ethics
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Senior Thesis Writing, presentations Poster session Symposium
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SummarySummary It’s all about opportunity! Opportunities for variety in your physics
curriculum Opportunities to supplement your Opportunities to supplement your
education (working on those “people skills” employers love) with
i l i i iextracurricular activities Opportunities to do research as an
undergraduateundergraduate Opportunities for your future!
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Contact InformationToni PittsCoordinator of Recruiting, Advising, and Special ProgramsEmail: tpitts@illinois edu Phone: 217 244 2948Email: tpitts@illinois.edu Phone: 217-244-2948
Merissa JonesAcademic AdvisorAcademic AdvisorEmail: majones5@illinois.edu Phone: 217-333-9361
Professor Kevin PittsEmail: kpitts@illinois.edu Phone: 217-333-3946
Department of PhysicsUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign1110 West Green Street
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0 West G ee St eetUrbana, Illinois 61801-3080