WKU Applied Physics Option

Students in the WKU Applied Physics Program will take some of the regular courses for physics majors in addition to the laboratory courses that concentrate on the high-tech experimental methods and instrumentation.

The internships in industry or at a national laboratory would cover six months in total (typically split into two 3-month sessions). Placement is organized through the Department of Physics and Astronomy in cooperation with the student and student’s faculty mentor.

Suggested sequence of physics courses:


Year	Fall Semester			Spring Semester
1 - Freshman	Modern Introductory Physics + Lab		4 h	University Physics I + Lab		5 h
2 - Sophomore	University Physics II + Lab		5 h	Modern Physics II		3 h
				Electrical Measurements Lab		1 h
Summer Internship I - Practicum in Physics and Astronomy 1 h
3 - Junior	Atomic Physics Lab		1 h	Circuits / Electronics + Lab		4 h
	Classical Mechanics I		3 h	Computational Physics	Use of Computers for Physical Measurements	3 h
	Thermodynamics		3 h	Junior Seminar		0.5 h
Summer Internship II - Internship in Physics and Astronomy 1 h
4 - Senior	Senior Seminar		0.5 h	Modern Optics + Lab		4 h
	Nuclear Physics + Lab	Solid State Physics + Lab	4 h	Medical Imaging + Lab	Radiation Biophysics + Lab	4 h
	Quantum Mechanics		3 h	Electricity & Magnetism I		3 h

	Required core courses for undergraduate major in Physics
	Courses suggested in Applied Physics Program
	At least one course is suggested for Applied Physics Program

As the program advances, additional upper-level courses in computational physics, lab instrumentation, homeland security applications, etc., are planned to be added as driven by student interest.