Physicists want to know all about the basic principles that underlie all natural phenomena on earth and beyond. Bringing these theories and observations home to create tools we can use in our lives is the purview of applied physics. The electronics and mechanical systems in our homes and factories, the imaging devices in hospitals, and the structural components that hold up our buildings are all the result of applied physics.

Northeastern’s program gives students the background of pure physics, and then shows them how to apply it to specific problems in everyday life. Course work introduces students to calculus, problem solving, and general chemistry before they specialize with courses like “Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics,” “Electromagnetic Waves and Optics,” and “Astrophysics and Cosmology.” In all of these courses, students have access to our state-of-the-art experimental and computer labs, where they learn on the same equipment that research physicists use in the field.

Graduates of the program find careers in industrial, government, or high-technology laboratories and in such fields as biological physics, computer science, geophysics, medical and radiation physics, and engineering. Many physics majors pursue advanced degrees in physics and related fields.