The Division of the Physical Sciences offers a one year program leading
to the degree of Master of Science in Physical Sciences. The program is
interdisciplinary in character with a focus on general education. It will
be of interest to those who wish to broaden or deepen their knowledge
in areas of physical science but do not seek a Ph.D., and also to those
who are undecided about seeking a Ph.D. degree or what area of research
specialization to choose. In addition, it should be of interest to students
who plan to obtain a Ph.D., but wish to strengthen their background in
their chosen area of specialization before starting a Ph.D. program.
Students in the program are required to complete nine courses and a master’s
research project. The courses are chosen from among the courses being
offered in the division, and at least four of these courses must be graduate
courses in a single department or associated with a specified “interdepartmental
track” (such as environmental science, biochemistry/physics, computational
methods in physical science, and optics/imaging). In order to accommodate
students who are seeking to broaden their knowledge of physical science,
a student may be allowed to take as many as three advanced undergraduate
courses in fields outside of his or her undergraduate major. In all cases,
the director and the student’s advisor must approve the chosen curriculum.
A typical master’s project would consist of performing or assisting
with a laboratory research experiment (for experimentalists) or performing
some numerical simulation “experiments” (for theorists). The
project normally is chosen in the winter quarter and carried out during
the spring quarter. A master’s paper summarizing the results of the
project is required.
Admission
A student seeking admission to the program normally must have a bachelor’s
degree in a traditional discipline of the physical sciences. GRE scores
for the general test (verbal, quantitative, and analytical) must be submitted,
and it is strongly recommended that the GRE subject score in an area of
physical science also be submitted. TOEFL scores are required for applicants
from foreign (non-English speaking) countries. The application deadline
is February 1 for admission for the following autumn, although later applications
will be considered on a “space available” basis.
Interested persons should contact the Office of the Dean of Students
in the Division of the Physical Sciences, Room 116, Jones Laboratory,
5747 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, telephone: (773) 702-8789,
e-mail: .rhefley@uchicago.edu.
This text last revised on 7/15/2004.
