Academics

Students have access to department facilities for extended hours, including the labs, the computer lab, and the physics reading room. Students are often involved in faculty research, an opportunity not generally afforded undergraduates at major universities. You will learn from hands-on experience in state of the art research facilities. There are a multitude of opportunities for research on campus and off campus at such locations as Argonne National Lab, University of Central Florida, Auburn, and Vanderbilt.

Your senior year you will work on a senior project, possibly doing professional-level research with a faculty mentor. You will follow the entire cycle of professional research, beginning with the project proposal process and culminating in various research presentation opportunities, including Stetson's Undergraduate Research and Creative Arts Symposium, and the possibility of publication of your work is also an option.

Stetson has active chapters of the Society of Physics Students (SPS) and the physics honor society, Sigma Pi Sigma. The Physics Department also regularly hosts guest physicists who come to give campus-wide public lectures and visit classes.

Course Information
Students who are interested in majoring in physics start their coursework with a survey of topics in classical physics such as Newtonian mechanics, heat, waves, electromagnetism, and optics, then are introduced to subjects such as special relativity, quantum mechanics, and atomic and nuclear physics.

Subsequent courses for the major focus on many of the same topics, but go into much more depth and harness more sophisticated mathematical techniques to describe phenomena and solve problems. Integrated laboratory work is designed to introduce students to the standard experimental methods that physicists employ to collect and analyze data.

Internship Opportunities
Students may apply for a Stetson Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) grant that pays a stipend for students to do research during the summer. Many of our students also participate in programs funded by federal agencies such as the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy. These pay a stipend and travel expenses for summer research internships at a variety of universities and national laboratories around the country.

Career Opportunities
Studying Physics at Stetson can open the door to an exciting future in any number of fields. Employers value a degree in physics because graduates learn to think analytically, and to solve problems and express themselves effectively. Many of our majors go on to graduate school in a wide array of fields ranging from physics and engineering to medical school teaching. Others choose to go directly into research in either industry or in academics.

Graduates are employed as faculty in universities, medical schools, and high schools; by companies such as IBM, Honeywell, and Martin Marietta; and by government agencies such as the Department of Defense and Oak Ridge National Laboroatories.

Clubs and Organizations
Society of Physics Students (open to all Physics students at Stetson) and Sigma Pi Sigma, the physics honor society.

Department Awards

The George L. Jenkins Prize in Physics is awarded annually to the top student enrolled in the introductory physics course and is funded by the family of George L. Jenkins, former chair of the Physics Department.

The Jack Gibson Endowed Physics Research Award is presented annually to the student who demonstrates excellence in the senior research sequence. This award was established in 2008 by Physics Department alumnus Jack Gibson.