Physics

The BGSU Master of Science in Physics program advances specialist knowledge and introduces doctoral-level research work.

BGSU is a top choice for advanced study of physics in Ohio. This program boasts small classes – taught by award-winning faculty, scholarships, assistantships, and high placement rates into Ph.D. programs and industry jobs.

Program Requirements

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Depending on your goals, you may choose either the thesis or exam pathway for earning your master’s in physics. As a terminal degree, a master’s of science can prepare you to enter a wide range of exciting careers in industry and scientific research.

Financial support, including tuition and a teaching or research assistantship stipend are available for graduate students in good standing. BGSU's Department of Physics and Astronomy is a small, supportive and friendly group of faculty, graduate and undergraduate students focused on success in teaching and research in our fields.

From the vastness of the cosmos to the nature of subatomic particles.

As a BGSU master’s student, you will actively perform cutting-edge scientific research in areas like materials science, nanoscience, solid-state physics, computational physics and astrophysics alongside our internationally recognized faculty in physics and materials science.

The BGSU materials physics group is interested in the experimental investigation of electrical, magnetic and optical properties of solids, with particular attention paid to those materials which have application in device technology.

Much of the department's research efforts center around materials physics from the atomic to macroscopic scales. Members of this group are interested in applying the methods of experimental and computational physics to a wide variety of research areas, including nanotechnology, renewable energy, semiconductor devices, and using antimatter to probe the nature of material defects.

Stand Out in courses like

Techniques of Experimental Physics
Advanced Classical Mechanics
Research Seminar
Statistical Mechanics
Advanced Quantum Mechanics
Techniques of Computational Physics

The program has a strong link to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Curriculum

The BGSU master’s in physics builds on an understanding of basic science and examines the foundations of quantum mechanics and electrodynamics, where applications to current problems in physics are explored.

This program’s thesis option provides more research experience, which is invaluable if your goal is to enter a doctoral program. Our Masters students focusing on materials science may continue their research in BGSU's Ph.D. program in Photochemistry.

Go Far in your career

Staff Physicist - U.S. National Laboratories
Computational Physicist
Research Physicist
Experimental Physicist
Medical Physicist
Polymer Physicist
University Professor

Facilities and equipment

Research facilities include a femtosecond non-linear optics facility, a fully-equipped low-temperature laboratory, a CCD-based imaging system, Fast Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer for optical measurements on thin films, and a clean ultra-high vacuum evaporation system with resistive and electron-gun evaporation systems.

Career

Physics has helped us understand our place in space-time and have led to many new technologies.

Physicists are exceptional problem solvers with skills that are in high demand, and progress in energy, telecommunications, energy efficiency and transport technologies have accelerated the demand for trained physicists. The Bureau of Labor Statistics finds job numbers for physicists will grow eight percent over the next decade. The median annual wage in May 2020 for physicists was $129,850.

As well as careers in research after a Ph.D. program, BGSU physics masters’s graduates have gone on to work in a wide range of scientific and engineering careers in industry, academia and government.

Information on careers in physics can be found through the American Physical Society and Physics World International.

Weekly physics seminars introduce visiting scholars and homegrown research throughout the semesters.

The Energy Lab at BGSU, led by A/Prof Farida A. Selim, often works with Physics and Astronomy MS students at our Ohio campus.

More Information

The master's in physics program is a part of the Department of Physics and Astronomy in the College of Arts and Sciences

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the graduate degree, students in physics are expected to be able to:

Demonstrate a rigorous understanding of how the Law of Gravitation and Newton’s dynamics account for the orbital properties of the planets and satellites in the solar system and the connection of the Newtonian approach with Lagrangian methods.
Demonstrate the ability to show how the Schrödinger equation provides a quantitative account of the properties of simple atomic systems, including wave functions and how potential barriers permit quantum mechanical tunneling.
Demonstrate knowledge of the quantitative relationships between distributions of charge and the nature of the electric fields produced by them and of the connection between currents and the magnetic fields produced by them.
Demonstrate the ability to calculate thermodynamic quantities by employing the methods of statistical ensembles and phase space.
Demonstrate the ability to solve differential equations that arise in physics applications in analytical forms and using numerical methods.
Demonstrate the capability to make accurate measurements of important physical quantities and to explain their significance.
Demonstrate the ability to present a professional talk on a research project in physics or astronomy and to write an appropriate abstract describing the contents of the talk.
Demonstrate the ability to synthesize scientific concepts, measurements, and equations (where appropriate) into a written paper.

Accreditation

Bowling Green State University [BGSU] is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. BGSU has been accredited by the Higher Learning Commission since 01/01/1916. The most recent reaffirmation of accreditation was received in 2012 - 2013. Questions should be directed to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness.

The physics and astronomy program underwent Program/Cluster Review during the Academic Year 2019-20.

More information on accreditation

Professional Licensure

Bowling Green State University programs leading to licensure, certification and/or endorsement, whether delivered online, face-to-face or in a blended format, satisfy the academic requirements for those credentials set forth by the State of Ohio.

Requirements for licensure, certification and/or endorsement eligibility vary greatly from one profession to another and from state to state. The physics and astronomy program does not lead to professional licensure.

* Job placement and salary information was compiled by the Office of Academic Assessment through the Graduation Survey from AY2015-2018. The data are gathered around the time of Commencement and a follow-up survey six months post Commencement. For the salary question, data for programs with fewer than fifteen responses are not included. Salaries for those programs are from the National Association of Colleges and Employers Summer 2019 Survey. For questions regarding the data, contact assessment@bgsu.edu.

Updated: 02/26/2024 09:12AM