Physics, Physics Education Option, B.A.
In physics, one attempts to discover, formulate, explain, and apply the basic laws of nature. You could be a physicist and work in areas as diverse as astrophysics, relativity, properties of materials, or the standard model of fundamental particles and interactions. Principles of physics provide the foundation for other sciences as well as engineering. Some of the examples of modern technological development from the application of physical principles include radio and television, computers, laser scanners, and communication by fiber optics. In addition, physicists explore problems in astronomy and theories for the origin and evolution of the universe.
At Cal State East Bay students can choose between a Physics, B.S. degree and a Physics, B.A. degree. The Physics, B.S. degree major program is designed to give students an understanding of the fundamentals of physics including concepts of atomic and nuclear physics, classical mechanics, wave motion and sound, electromagnetism and optics, heat and thermodynamics, relativity, quantum mechanics, and elementary particles and their interactions.
Whereas the Physics, B.S. degree provides more focus, the Physics, B.A. degree major program is designed to satisfy the needs of students who require greater breadth of study across the sciences than the Physics, B.S. program can provide. Students who might be more interested in the Physics, B.A. degree, for example, would be prospective secondary-school teachers, or students who wish to pursue interdisciplinary study (e.g., in biophysics), or graduate study in professional programs (e.g., in the health sciences), business, or law in technical fields. For those students interested in becoming secondary-school teachers, an option in Physics Education is available which has a larger breadth of science courses required for teaching in California.
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