CAS: Physics — Interdisciplinary Option

Sample Pathways

Below is an example of a four-year plan of a College of General Studies student pursuing a degree in physics-the Interdisciplinary Option, which gives students the flexibility to combine physics with another focus area in an interdisciplinary program. Students will work with their CGS academic advisors and the Department of Physics to plan their own pathway to a physics degree.

  Semester I Semester II
Freshman Year CGS RH 103
CGS SS 103
CAS MA 123
Interdisciplinary course within a participating department (if prerequisite needed) or CAS Second Language (if needed)		 CGS Required Courses (London or Boston-New England semester)
Sophomore Year CGS HU 201
CGS SS 201
CAS MA 124
CAS PY 251 or PY 211		 CGS HU 202
CAS PY 252 or PY 212
CAS MA 225
Interdisciplinary course within a participating department (if prerequisite needed) or CAS Second Language (if needed)
Junior Year CAS PY 351 (or PY 313)
MA Elective 200 level or higher
Interdisciplinary course within a participating department (if prerequisite needed)
CAS Second Language (if needed) or Hub Elective		 CAS PY 355
Interdisciplinary course within a participating department (200 level or higher)
Physics Elective #1 (300 level or higher)
CAS Second Language (if needed) or Hub Elective
Senior Year CAS PY 405
CAS PY 408
Interdisciplinary course within a participating department (200 level or higher)
CAS Second Language (if needed) or Hub Elective		 CAS PY 451
Interdisciplinary course within a participating department (300 level or higher)
Physics Elective #2 (300 level or higher)
CAS Second Language (if needed) or Hub Elective

Note: Choose your electives carefully to fulfill any remaining BU Hub requirements. You will find a list of all of the courses that carry Hub units on the University’s BU Hub website. External courses are not eligible for Hub general education credit.

Physics courses that carry Hub units can be found on the Physics Department webpage.

College of General Studies Program Requirements

  • Two rhetoric courses: CGS RH 103 and CGS RH 104
    • CGS RH 104 is taken during the London semester
  • Two natural science courses: CGS NS 201 and CGS NS 202
    • Physics majors in good standing will be exempted from CGS NS 201 and CGS NS 202.
  • Three social science courses:
    • CGS SS 104 is required and is taken during the London semester
    • Students select at least two additional SS courses and will work with their academic advisor to determine course selection
  • Three humanities courses:
    • CGS HU 104 is required and is taken during the London semester
    • Students select at least two additional HU courses and will work with their academic advisor to determine course selection

Note: Students who are exempt from CGS NS 202 must enroll in at least one CGS course in semester II of sophomore year.

Major Requirements – Interdisciplinary Option

This option provides students with a strong physics preparation, but also provides them the flexibility to pursue an interdisciplinary academic program combining physics with training in a related science or engineering program. It is well suited for students planning to pursue graduate studies in a discipline other than physics or to enter a career in a related field upon graduation.

Prerequisites (6)

  • CAS MA 123 and 124, or MA 127
  • CAS PY 251, 252, 351, 355 (or PY 211, 212, 313, 355)

Principal Courses (8)

  • CAS PY 405, 408, and 451.
  • Two additional physics courses at the 300 level or above (but not including CAS PY 313, 351, 355, 401, 402, 482, 491, or 492) are also required.
  • In addition, three coordinated courses from a participating science (CS, MA, BI, etc.) or engineering department are required.
    • If the participating department is in CAS, at least one of these courses must be at the 300 level or higher, and the other two must be at the 200 level or higher.
    • If these are mathematics (MA) courses, they must be different from the required courses mentioned below.
    • If the participating department is in the College of Engineering (ENG), all three courses must be at the junior level or above.
    • CAS PY 581 may be used to satisfy the requirement of a 300-level course from a participating department in CAS or a course from a participating department in ENG.
    • Please consider the prerequisites for the 300-level or higher courses from participating departments when mapping out a schedule.
  • A grade of C or higher must be attained in all principal courses.

Required Related Courses (2)

  • CAS MA 225 and one other mathematics course at the 200 level or higher chosen in consultation with the student’s physics advisor
  • A grade of C or higher must be attained in both of these required related courses.

For more information about the major, please see the Physics Department webpage and the CAS Bulletin.

For further questions, please contact Margaret Barch in the Physics department.

Continuation Requirements

  • Completion of the CGS required courses and appropriate electives
  • Cumulative GPA greater than or equal to 2.00

Graduation Requirements

Boston University students completing a degree in CAS must also complete the following requirements.

  • BU Hub requirements
    • Students who take the specific CGS courses noted on the pathway above will fulfill all BU Hub requirements except the units listed below. These remaining Hub units will be fulfilled through the following courses:
    • Quantitative Reasoning I (I unit) fulfilled by CAS PY 251 or PY 211
    • Quantitative Reasoning II (I unit) fulfilled by CAS MA 225
    • Scientific Inquiry I (I unit) fulfilled by CAS PY 251 or PY 211
    • Teamwork/Collaboration (2 units) fulfilled by CAS PY 251, 252 (or PY 211, 212)
    • You will fulfill the remaining Hub units – Creativity/Innovation (1 unit) and Writing-Intensive Course (1 unit) – through the courses you take for your CAS major and/or other electives
  • CAS requirements:
  • Physics major requirements
  • CAS requires a minimum of 128 credits, excluding PDP, ROTC, and CAS FY and SY courses.

This is a sample pathway to be used in consultation with your CGS Academic Advisor.

It is subject to change according to course availability and individual circumstances.

Last revised: 05/08/2022