Courses & Programs - Bishop's University

Course Groupings

Elective Courses

These courses are open to any students with little or no scientific background (some restrictions apply).

PHY111 Physics of Everyday Phenomena
PHY112 Introduction to Holography
PHY113 Introduction to Astronomy

Physics Major Courses

Four-year program (BSc)

1st year: Courses have numbers that start with 100 to 199.
2nd year: Courses have numbers that start with 200 to 299.
3rd year: Courses have numbers that start with 300 and end at 399.
4th year: Courses have numbers that start with 300 and end at 399.

Three-year program (BSc)

1st year: Courses have numbers that start with 200 to 299.
2nd year: Courses have numbers that start with 300 and end at 399.
3rd year: Courses have numbers that start with 300 and end at 399.

Physics Honours Courses

Final year Honours physics courses have numbers that start with 400 and end at 480.

Graduate Courses

All graduate MSc courses have numbers that start with 500 or above.

Programs

Physics encompasses a diverse range of disciplines including electronics, astrophysics, particle physics, and solid state physics. The Honours degree is an intensive program of advanced study that prepares students for direct entry into graduate school in physics at the Master’s or Doctoral degree level. Almost all honours graduates (and some majors) enrol in graduate school and a list of recent honours graduates can be found on the Students page. The Major program entails a rigorous and comprehensive approach to the study of physics and prepares students for industry, education and, on completion of a qualifying year, graduate work in physics. The Major program has sufficient electives to allow a substantial number of courses to be taken in another discipline (minor program), or even a second Major program in a related discipline. A Science Teaching major program with a specialization in physics and any one other science discipline (e.g., chemistry or mathematics) is also offered.

Physics Honours

The honours program is designed so that students can gain a much deeper appreciation of physics. Students completing an honours degree must complete a research dissertation (thesis) that is generally regarded as a “mini-Masters” thesis. The results of these theses should be publishable (either in pedagogical or research journals) and in fact many undergraduate students have already been co-authors on refereed research and/or conference papers. A variety of different projects have been undertaken by students ranging from astrophysics to quantum mechanics to holography. A list of recent theses can be found in the Projects section of this website.

Thus the honours program gives students a significant advantage in being awarded graduate scholarships (e.g., the NSERC Postgraduate Scholarship is presently worth in excess of $17,000/year). A list of recent graduates who have been awarded these prestigious awards can be found on the Students page of this website. Students enrolled in the honours program are also much more likely to be hired as summer research assistants by departmental faculty members (more than 80% of honours students have been hired as summer researchers).

All of the courses for the Physics Major (listed below) in addition to the following courses are required for Physics Honours: Physics 462b, 480f, any additional 400-level course. Mathematics 317. Only 15 credits of options are required. Total = 90 lecture course credits.
Physics labs: PHL 206, PHL 385, PHL 386, Computer Science lab: CSL 211. Total = 6 lab course credits.

Physics Major

The following courses are required for a Physics Major: Physics 101a, 206a, 207b, 208b, 270a, 315b, 316a, 317b, 318a, 319b, 320a, 321b, 325, 361a, 371b. Mathematics 108a, 206a, 207b, 209b, Computer Science 211a.
Total: 42 lecture-course credits physics, 12 credits mathematics, 3 credits computer science, 30 credits options. Total = 90 lecture course credits.
Physics labs: PHL 206, PHL 385, PHL 386, Computer Science lab: CSL 211. Total = 6 lab course credits.

Physics Minor

A minor in Physics allows students to gain a solid introduction to the subject. The following courses are required: PHY 191, PHY 192, MAT 108, PHY 101, PHY 206, PHY 207, PHY 208 and one other lecture course in Physics selected from 200 and 300 level courses. The total course credit requirement for the minor is 24 credits.

Physics MSc

The Master’s Program is designed to give students a deeper appreciation of physics while giving them a comprehensive exposure to research methodology that will allow them to become independent researchers. Research is being carried out in the following areas:

Astrophysics (High Energy Phenomena, Stellar and Binary Evolution, Pulsars)
Theoretical Physics (Cosmology, Gravitational Theory, Dark Energy)
Particle Physics (Lattice Quantum Chromodynamics)

Go to the MSc page.

For complete details, view the Physics section of the academic calendar.

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