College Life

Private Schools That Are Well Known for This Major

• California Institute of Technology
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Stanford University
• Harvard University
• Princeton University

State Schools That Are Well Known for This Major

• University of California—Berkeley
• University of Illinois at Urbana—Champaign
• University of California—Santa Barbara
• University of Maryland—College Park

Classes in the Major

Physics. Okay, so we don't get points for being unpredictable. What can we say? Physics classes are required for the physics major. Students majoring in physics get to take a lot of crazy-cool science courses where they understand how the physical universe affects humans, the Earth in general, other space junk, jelly beans, puppies, and all that jazz. Students have to learn about matter, energy, and momentum if they really want to know how to run numbers. So, they usually have to knock off a few math courses before taking physics. After all, it is nice to actually be able to understand all those formulas and whatnot.

Theoretical Physics. These courses provide an understanding of everything from string theory—and its friends, bosonic and superstring—to quantum mechanics. If you're going to call yourself a physicist, you'll need to be well-versed in how thermodynamics allows forces to interact, and how general relativity helps you free fall. Many theories may not be scientifically proven yet (and believe us, you'll care a lot about that), but you still have to know what's out there.

Astronomy. Here you'll learn where stars go to die (in a super cool, non-morbid sort of way), ponder the possibility of time travel, learn about red shift, and contemplate the likelihood that some alien version of you is contemplating exactly the same thing billions of light years away (i.e. get cozy with the Drake Equation). You'll also learn what a light year actually is, and why you don't need to worry about a rogue planet slamming into Earth and ending life as we know it. Plus, you'll be well versed in Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion, the Cosmic Distance Ladder, the Big Bang Theory (not the TV show), and the history of the universe. 

Pure Mathematics. If you liked geometry in high school, then you're in for a treat. Geometry is just one type of pure mathematics. In a pure mathematics course, you'll be introduced to all of geometry's friends, like number theory, integers, algebra, and automorphic forms. It's different from applied mathematics in that, well, it's not all that applicable. The study of pure mathematics doesn't exactly represent real-world manifestations, but is instead an abstract use of numbers and their relations to each other.

Geometry. Like all pure mathematics, geometry studies abstract concepts. It discusses how space and objects work together, or what binary operations are used in a formula. The real world? What's that? All geometry knows is what the numbers say. These types of math are used in everything from astronomy to engineering to physics.

Chemistry. Electrons, neutrons, bonds—the basic building blocks of chemistry. As a physics major, you'll need to take a bunch of classes on everything from physical chemistry, to biochem, to geochemistry. Some believe that chemistry is just a subset of physics. After all, physics is the study of matter and energy, while chemistry is the study of how matter interacts, which often involves the distribution of energy. In chemistry courses, you'll focus on the practical applications of chemical principles, like what makes an element unstable and when you shouldn't use it.