Introduction to Physics and the Physics Concentrations

Physics programs at SUNY Cortland provide a broad foundation in physics as well as a versatile background in applied mathematics, computer skills and familiarity with electronic equipment which are useful in many areas of technology, engineering, business, teaching, and industry.  In addition to more traditional physics career paths, students with physics training may also readily enter such fields as astronomy, biophysics, geophysics, medicine, physical chemistry, and radiology.

SUNY Cortland's bachelor of arts and bachelor of science programs in physics lead to degrees preparing students for graduate work in physics, industrial or governmental research, an additional degree in engineering, work in environmental science, work in geophysics, or teaching of physics and general science or physics and mathematics in secondary schools.

Students who major in elementary education may choose an emphasis in science, including physics, while those who major in elementary and early secondary education may choose a concentration in science, including physics.

Students with an interest in environmental concerns may choose a physics major with a concentration in environmental science. Those wishing a degree in engineering may participate in one of SUNY Cortland's 3+2 Cooperative Engineering programs in which students spend three years at Cortland, completing most of the requirements for a bachelor's degree in physics, then spend two years at a cooperating institution to complete requirements for a bachelor's degree in engineering.

Those who transfer to SUNY Cortland in the junior year for the liberal arts physics major are urged to present credit for a three-part calculus sequence, one year of general chemistry and one year of a calculus-based introductory physics course.  Most General Education requirements in the areas of art and humanities and social and behavioral sciences also should be completed.

The Physics and Engineering Club

The students in all of our programs run a college-sponsored club which brings speakers to campus, manages a physics club office with funds earmarked for student projects, holds tutoring sessions for the introductory courses, and makes field trips to such locations as The National Aerospace Museum in Washington D.C., the Science Center in Toronto, the Hayden Planetarium in New York City, and the Science Center in Boston.

Honor Society in Physics

SUNY Cortland has a chapter of Sigma Pi Sigma, the national physics honor society.

Graduate Programs in Physics

The Physics Department offers the following graduate programs: a graduate curriculum in Secondary Education in Physics leading to the award of the Master of Science in Education, a graduate curriculum in Secondary Education in Physics and Mathematics leading to the award of the Master of Science in Education, a graduate curriculum in Teaching of Secondary Science (for liberal arts majors in mathematics or science) leading to the award of the Master of Arts in Teaching.

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