Physics - Hamilton College Clinton

Physics from Hamilton College Clinton is a Campus Bachelor Physics degree that prepares you for a Science career. Physics at Hamilton is explored in small classes, with faculty members who know their students on an individual basis. That means one-on-one encouragement, personal direction and research opportunities suited to your needs and interests. In the best liberal arts tradition, courses stimulate analytical thinking, critical reading and the ability to write and speak with clarity, precision and authority. In addition, hands-on laboratory work in state-of-the art facilities is a central part of the curriculum from introductory courses to senior seminars. The Hamilton physics program offers an excellent grounding in the ideas, thinking skills and laboratory experience necessary for postgraduate study in many science-based disciplines. Prospective engineers will be interested in Hamilton's five-year, combined-degree programs with Columbia University, the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Washington University in St. Louis. Most physics majors develop an interest in the field in high school, and bring a basic knowledge of algebra, trigonometry and calculus to their study at Hamilton. But the Physics Department also welcomes students who come to the discipline through other interests and are willing to pursue the preparatory courses necessary for a major or minor in physics. RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES The close student-faculty collaboration that is at the heart of Hamilton's physics program means that every major completes at least one substantial research project before graduation ? with opportunities for many more. Student projects often lead to papers that are presented at professional conferences and/or published in scholarly journals. Recent student-faculty collaborations have been published in Physical Review, New Journal of Physics and Classical and Quantum Gravity. Hamilton regularly offers research options in such fields as theoretical quantum gravity, general relativity, nuclear physics , laser spectroscopy, nonlinear dynamics and astronomy. Faculty members maintain active research programs in such fields as materials science, laser spectroscopy, atomic physics, theoretical physics and computational chemical physics. In addition, students may arrange independent study projects based on topics of interest not offered in the regular curriculum. THE SENIOR PROGRAM All senior physics students work collaboratively with faculty members on research projects as part of the Senior Program. This intensive one-semester project combines original scientific research with reading and understanding the scientific literature. It culminates in a senior thesis that is defended in a series of oral presentations. The Senior Program reflects Hamilton's commitment to a strong grounding in writing and public speaking. RESOURCES State-of-the-art facilities, advanced technology and small classes at the Science Center mean that Hamilton undergraduates have the opportunity to work closely with instruments available only to graduate students at many schools. The Science Center is fully wireless and houses more than 100 teaching and research laboratories as well as offices and classrooms, student areas and a coffee shop. Instrumentation includes a laser lab, a solar classroom, high-resolution optical spectroscopy, a 500 MHz variable-temperature multinuclear nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer, nuclear counting equipment and an advanced computer lab. Hamilton also is home to the solar-heated C.H.F. Peters Astronomical Observatory, which houses an 11 ?" Maksutov telescope and several smaller telescopes. The observatory has been recently upgraded and features computer control of the telescope mount and CCD readout for collecting images. Hamilton's Quantitative Literacy Center offers tutoring in courses that include a mathematics/quantitative component. Students may drop in to review topics as needed or to use computers or the video library. The center also offers a review for the mathematics section of the Graduate Record Exam and workshops to accompany specific courses. Tutors at the center are top students who have been recommended by faculty members and trained to assist other students. View more details on Hamilton College . Ask your questions and apply online for this program or find other related Physics courses.