Program learning outcomes (PLO) summarize the most important knowledge, skills, abilities, and attitudes that students are expected to develop over the course of their studies. The program learning outcomes communicate the faculty’s expectations to students, provide a framework for faculty evaluation of the curriculum based on empirical data, and help improve and measure the impact of implemented changes. Students graduating with a B.S. in Physics (Astrophysics) will demonstrate:

PLO 1. Ability to solve problems using concepts in classical and quantum mechanics, statistical mechanics and electromagnetism.

PLO 2. Proficiency in mathematics and the mathematical concepts needed for a proper understanding of physics.

PLO 3. Ability to take measurements in a physics laboratory and analyze the measurements to draw valid conclusions.

PLO 4. Ability to communicate scientific content effectively, both orally and in writing.

The department undergraduate adviser (physicsadvising@ucsc.edu) works closely with students interested in pursuing the major to ensure that they begin the program immediately and follow the appropriate steps toward its completion.

Before coming to the University of California, Santa Cruz:

High school students coming to UC Santa Cruz as frosh should emphasize their mathematics preparation with the expectation that they will take the first calculus course, MATH 19A, before their second quarter at UCSC. Students who come to UC Santa Cruz with credit for MATH 19A will be able to start the Physics 5 series in the first quarter. PHYS 5A is offered in the fall and winter quarters each year. Students with a score of 5 on the AP Physics C Mechanics and AP Physics C Electricity and Magnetism examinations are exempt from taking PHYS 5A and PHYS 5C respectively, and the associated lab courses.

After coming to UC Santa Cruz:

This major is highly course intensive and sequential; students who intend to pursue this major must begin taking classes for the major in their first quarter at UCSC.

Incoming students in the physics major should complete the Math Placement process as early as possible, so that the placement is posted before enrollment begins.For more information, please review the Math Placement website.

In their first term, students should enroll in the highest course in the following sequence that they are eligible for: MATH 2, MATH 3, MATH 19A, MATH 19B, MATH 23A, MATH 23B. Students should not take MATH 11A or MATH 11B or MATH 16A or MATH 16B. Graduating in four years is still possible for a student who places into MATH 2 or MATH 3; the department undergraduate adviser and the department's alternatives webpage should be consulted.

Students who come to UC Santa Cruz with credit for MATH 19A, and have room in their schedule, should take PHYS 5A and PHYS 5L (unless they have a score of 5 on the AP Physics C Mechanics examination) and PHYS 5L in their first term. Those who come to UCSC with credit for MATH 19B and PHYS 5A and PHYS 5L, and have room in their schedule, may consider taking PHYS 5C and PHYS 5N (unless they have a score of 5 on the AP Physics C Electricity & Magnetism examination) in their first term. The Physics Department tries to match incoming students who are interested with research opportunities, if they are available.

Students who for some reason do not start the courses for the major in their first term should consult the department undergraduate adviser and the alternatives webpage. Students who do not begin the lower-division requirements during their first year will have difficulty completing the program within four years.

Transfer Admission Screening Policy Expand and Collapse

Getting Started in the Major: Transfer Students Expand and Collapse

Major Qualification Expand and Collapse

Appeal Process Expand and Collapse

How to Declare a Major Expand and Collapse

All courses used to satisfy the physics (astrophysics) major requirements must be taken for a letter grade.

Students who complete a major sponsored by the Physics Department cannot complete a second major sponsored by the Physics Department or a physics minor.

Students cannot complete both the physics (astrophysics) major and the astrophysics minor.

The department awards "honors" (3.5 grade point average or better) and "highest honors"(3.8 grade point average or better) to top graduating students each year. The department also awards "honors" for outstanding work on the senior thesis, made upon the recommendation of the faculty thesis adviser.

• Students planning a senior thesis should find a faculty thesis advisor as early as possible, but no later than the beginning of the senior year for four-year students or the beginning of the second year for transfer students. For further information about the senior thesis, see Senior Thesis.
• Students who join a major program of the Physics Department with some of the required courses completed, or have room in their program for additional courses, should consult with the Physics Department undergraduate adviser.
• Students who fall behind the planners should consult the Physics Department undergraduate adviser and Alternatives.
• All the transfer major planners assume that IGETC has been completed in community college, or has been partially completed and can be finished while at UC Santa Cruz (including summers).