Physics, B.A. Comprehensive Science High School Teaching Licensure

While completing either a Physics BS or Physics BA, students can earn licensure to teach high school physics and other science subjects by completing several additional courses. This provides the same benefits and career opportunities as the Physics BS or BA, along with the option to teach in a public high school in North Carolina or any other state with an NC reciprocity agreement.

PROGRAM DISTINCTIONS

• Professors Aarnio and Miroshnichenko run the Three College Observatory, using it for their own and student research, as well as offering public viewing nights and course field trips.
• The department also operates the UNCG Planetarium for use in astronomy courses and to benefit the Triad-area community. Its Spitz projector displays and animates stars, planets, and our sun and moon on the interior of its 20-foot dome.
• Accreditations and affiliations include:
  • American Institute of Physics
  • American Association of Physics Teachers
  • American Astronomical Society
  • American Association for the Advancement of Science
  • Biophysical Society
  • American Society of Adaptation Professionals

THE STUDENT EXPERIENCE

• Small, interactive classes.
• Dedicated teaching faculty with research focused on astronomy, astrophysics, biophysics, nonlinear systems and chaos, particle physics, and science education.
• Opportunities to work closely with faculty on research projects. Recent projects have included theoretical models of human heartbeats, studies of variable stars in globular clusters, studies of the sodium pump in kidney cells, and research into students’ science self-efficacy.
• Participation in clubs and organizations including the Sigma Pi Sigma Physics Honor Society and the Society for Physics Students, which makes frequent trips to research facilities such as the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in Greenbank, West Virginia., and the Triangle Universities Nuclear Laboratory.
• The potential to earn a BS in physics in three years and move directly into a Ph.D. program in nanoscience.

AFTER GRADUATION

• Graduates of approved teacher education curricula are eligible for initial licensure on the basis of UNCG’s recommendation to the State Department of Public Instruction.