Graduate Physics at UMBC

Admission Requirements

Students wishing to enter the Ph.D. or the M.S. programs in Applied Physics or Atmospheric Physics should have an undergraduate degree in physics, chemistry, engineering, mathematics, or a field related to atmospheric physics or meteorology. Ideally, their undergraduate curriculum should have included courses in modern physics, wave mechanics, and electromagnetic theory. All students must meet the basic minimum standards for admission to the University of Maryland Graduate School, Baltimore. Decisions on admission will be made by the UMBC Physics Department Graduate Committee, and will be based on undergraduate grades, letters of recommendation, and Graduate Record Examination scores (Aptitude Test). Although not required, the Advanced Test in Physics is recommended applicants.

About UMBC

UMBC is a major research university (Carnegie Research Intensive rating) in the Baltimore-Washington area, and offers graduate students and exciting environment for advanced study. With approximately 10,000 undergraduate and approximately 3,000 graduate students in the liberal arts and sciences, engineering and public policy, UMBC is large enough to provide students with excellent training and research experience and small enough for close student-faculty interaction. The University is a growing center for research and development and technology commercialization. Campus grants and contracts for research and training total more than $100 million, up from $10 million just six years ago, and 90 university-developed technologies are available for licensing. Adjacent to the campus, the UMBC Technology Center and bwtech@UMBC Research and Technology Park house private research, development and training organizations seeking interaction with University faculty, students and research facilities. UMBC's convenient, suburban location 15 minutes from downtown Baltimore and 30 minutes from the Washington, D.C. beltway offers exciting opportunities for research collaboration with industry and government agencies, access to outstanding seminar speakers and a wealth of cultural and recreational activities.

Facilities and Resources

The Department of Physics currently consists of about 20 tenure-track faculty, 14 research faculty, 12 adjunct faculty and approximately 50 graduate students. Research expenditures exceed $7 million per year, including funding from NASA, NOAA, the National Science Foundation, the Office of Naval Research, the Army Research Laboratory and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Department of Energy, and the Department of Defense.

Research opportunities include:

• Astrophysics
• Atmospheric lidar
• Electro-optics
• High-Energy Astrophysics
• Nano-particle alloys
• Nanoscience and technology
• Photorefractive polymers
• Quantum computing
• Quantum imaging
• Quantum optics and lasers
• Remote sensing
• Satellite atmospheric spectroscopy
• Semiconductor photonics
• Space radiation effects
• Surface and interface physics
• Terahertz imaging and science

Astophysics is offered in conjunction with the UMBC/NASA Joint Center in Astrophysics (JCA), which includes over 10 research scientists.

The atmospheric physics program is offered in conjunction with the UMBC/NASA Joint Center in Earth Systems Technology (JCET), which includes more than 40 research scientists.

Financial Support

All graduate students in good academic standing receive financial support as research or teaching assistants. The full 12-month stipend is currently $20,000 plus comprehensive health benefits and 23 credits of tuition remission. Competitive fellowships, supplemental awards, and internships are available for specially qualified students.

Housing Information

Extensive off-campus housing is available in neighboring communities. For more information call Commuter Student Services at (410) 455-2770.