Something for everyone

Emory's Physics Department offers five degree programs to choose from:

• BS in Physics—if you plan to pursue graduate education in physics.
• BA in Physics—if you plan to enter medicine, dentistry, law, business, teaching or another field where a physics background is an asset.
• BS in Applied Physics—if you plan on graduate work and a career in engineering.
• BS in Physics and Astronomy—if you plan on graduate education and a career in astronomy.
• BA in Physics and Astronomy—if you are interested in studying astronomy but may pursue another career such as medicine, law or teaching.
• Minor in Physics
• Minor in Astronomy

See Degree Programs for details

Small class size
and friendly atmosphere

Emory physics majors are a close-knit group of students who enjoy a remarkably high degree of personal interaction with faculty members. The faculty-to-student ratio is almost one-to-one. Class size for any course beyond the introductory level rarely exceeds ten students, and it is usually smaller. All undergraduate courses, without exception, are taught by members of the faculty. The department's emphasis on teaching enables undergraduates to develop close working relationships with their professors that often result in exciting research and/or directed studies opportunities. See Student News for examples.


Majors have their own study lounge within the department—adjacent to the kitchen— available any time, around the clock. They are also encouraged to become active members of our chapter of the Society of Physics Students (SPS) where, during monthly meetings, they can relax, enjoy some pizza and explore a range of ideas. The department also fosters a sense of community through annual gatherings such as the Spring picnic, holiday party, and Fall welcome party for new graduate students.

Research opportunities

Physics majors are strongly encouraged to pursue undergraduate research through directed study courses and, for those students who qualify, through the Honors Program.

Due to our excellent student/faculty ratio, it's very easy for majors to get involved in undergraduate research and establish a close working relationship with a faculty member of their choice. Students doing research receive ongoing mentoring from faculty and technical staff; the department provides a computer laboratory, instrumentation fabrication shop, and other state-of-the-art resources to support their work.

Physics faculty members have exciting opportunities in their labs and are eager to involve majors in their research programs. See Undergraduate Research for details.

Options after graduation

We usually graduate between 5-10 majors each year. Our BS majors can choose to go to the best graduate programs in physics if they want to pursue a career in physics or astronomy. Our BA majors are equally well trained to excel in medicine, law, industry, business, teaching, policy studies, and a host of other fields in which the rigorous background of a physics education is a decided advantage.

Physics graduates typically have impressive options upon graduation. See the American Institute of Physics’ Web site for recent surveys covering starting salaries for BS and BA graduates in physics and physics-related fields.
http://www.aip.org/statistics/trends/phystrends.html. The AIP also has a useful Career Services website with advice and job listings for physicists. http://www.aip.org/careersvc/, and a new page listing companies who have hired physicists recently, listed by state www.aip.org/statistics/trends/emptrends.html. Other resources for finding jobs are physics.ucsd.edu/teaching/recruit/jobs.html here and here http://www.physicstoday.org/jobs/.

State-of-the-art facilities

The Mathematics and Science Center is one of the newest classroom buildings on Emory’s campus. Its award-winning design features a huge atrium that connects the building’s three wings. The physics department, which occupies 35,000 square feet of the building, has ample space for everything needed to support teaching and research. Our new planetarium offers an exciting resource for the Emory community as a whole, while a roof top observatory houses a DFM 24-inch diameter Cassegrain reflecting telescope and mounts for small telescopes on the rooftop observation pad.

Campus life

Emory College enjoys the benefits of a small liberal-art college nestled within a much larger University and its professional schools. In addition to ranking as one of the nation’s top 25 universities, it has long been one of the most ethnically and religiously diverse university communities in the United States. The College reflects the University’s commitment to participation in the global community with a variety of international programs available to students.

Cultural centers such as the Michael C. Carlos Museum and the newly Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts provide art, music and dance on campus while all of the cultural and entertainment resources of down-town and mid-town Atlanta are within easy reach. The campus borders the intimately-scaled Emory Village where coffee shops, restaurants and shops are within an easy walk from campus.

The campus life of Emory College is shaped by the outstanding quality of its undergraduates. The College had over 12,000 applications for the first-year class entering in Fall 2005, which numbered 1,284 students. Students enjoy a student/faculty radio of 10:1. In addition to an impressive spectrum of academic resources, students also have access to an array of arts, civic, pre-professional and volunteer organizations on campus.

Scheduling a Visit

Please contact Dr. Eric Weeks, Director of Undergraduate Studies, if you are interested in studying physics at Emory, and/or to arrange an appointment to visit the Department. E-mail him at weeks@physics.emory.edu or call him directly at 404-727-4479. Alternatively, you can contact the Program Development Coordinator at 404-727-7862 or the main Department number at 404-727-6584. For driving directions, go to Find Us. We invite you to visit the rest of our site for more information on faculty, research, academic programs, and our majors.