Date of
Revision
Date of
Previous
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Programme Specification
A programme specification is required for any programme on which a student may be
registered.
All programmes of the University are subject to the University’s Quality Assurance
and Enhancement processes as set out in the DASA Policies and Procedures Manual.
Programme Title
Theoretical Physics
Final Award
BSc Honours
(exit route if applicable for
Postgraduate Taught
Programmes)
Programme Code
TPHBSC-S
UCAS
Code
F340
JACS
Code
Criteria for Admissions
A-level (or equivalent) grade A Mathematics and grade B Physics.
(Please see General Regulations)
Mode of Study (Full-time, Part-time, other)
Full-time
Type of
Programme
BSc Honours –
Theoretical Physics
Length of
Programme
Total
Credits for
Programme
3 Years
Awarding Institution/Body
Queen's University Belfast
Teaching Institution
QUB, School of Mathematics and Physics
School/Department
School of Mathematics and Physics
Framework for Higher Education
Qualification Level
FHEQ Level 6
360
http://www.qaa.ac.uk/publications/informationan
dguidance
QAA Benchmark Group
http://www.qaa.ac.uk/AssuringStandardsAndQ
uality/subject-guidance/Pages/Subjectbenchmark-statements.aspx
Mathematics, Statistics and Operational Research
Physics, Astronomy and Astrophysics
Collaborative Organisation and form of
Collaboration (if applicable)
Accreditations
(PSRB)
ATAS Clearance
Institute of Physics
Date of next
scheduled
accreditation visit
2018
External Examiner Name:
External Examiner Institution/Organisation
Professor G O’Sullivan (Physics)
University College Dublin
Professor J Fyodorov (Applied Maths)
Queen Mary, University of London
Does the Programme have any approved
exemptions from the University General
Regulations
Yes
(Please see General Regulations)
Programme Specific Regulations
□
X
No
(If yes, please state here any exemptions to regulations which have
been approved for this programme)
Candidates who have completed an Honours Pathway to
the satisfaction of the examiners shall be placed in one of
three honours classes, first, second and third, the second
class being in two divisions.
When calculating the honours classification the following
module weightings are used –
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
10%
30%
60%
Candidates who do not achieve marks sufficient to be
awarded third class honours may be eligible for an Ordinary
BSc degree.
Transfers to Other Pathways
At the end of Stage 2, students maintaining a weighted
average of at least 55% may transfer to the MSci Pathway
in Theoretical Physics.
Students may transfer to other Pathways (BSc, or if they
have achieved a weighted average of at least 55%,, MSci),
provided they have passed all the compulsory modules on
the Pathway to which they are transferring up to that time of
transfer.
Progression
Stage 1
Students will normally take six modules (or their equivalent)
at Level 1 or above. Students must have passed at least five
Stage 1 modules in order to progress to Stage 2.
Stage 2
Students will normally take six modules (or their equivalent)
at Level 2 or above. Students must have passed at least five
Stage 2 modules, and all six Stage 1 modules, in order to
progress to Stage 3.
Students with protected characteristics
.
Are students subject to Fitness to Practise
Regulations
Please indicate Yes/No
(Please see General Regulations)
Length of Programme
Fitness to Practise programmes are those which permit
students to enter a profession which is itself subject to
Fitness to Practise rules
3 YEARS
Educational Aims of Programme On completion of the programme the student will be able to:
To provide students with the knowledge and understanding of the principal facts and theories of physics, and a range of its applications, and to give experience of experimental
and computational methods in physics;
To provide students with knowledge and understanding of those areas of mathematics most fundamental to physics, and the ability to apply this knowledge in the context of
physics;
To develop a wide range of intellectual, practical and transferable skills, making the students employable in a considerable range of careers both technical and non-technical.
Learning Outcomes: Cognitive Skills
On the completion of this course successful students will have
developed their ability to:
think logically;
analyse problems and situations;
choose the appropriate physics and mathematics needed for the
solution of those problems;
carry out structured organisation of their work;
learn independently, under guidance;
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies
Methods of Assessment
By its nature, physics has to be presented
logically. The lectures provide exemplars of this
process, as do the model answers for the
assignments. Applications of theory are
discussed in lectures and in problems classes or
tutorials, in a manner which brings out the need
to call upon a range of mathematics and physics
skills in order to solve a problem. The use of
targeted assignments requires students to
organise their work, sometimes collaboratively
but mostly independently.
The assessment of these skills is implicit
in all forms of assessment, but is not
explicitly measured. The overall degree
of success achieved by each student
reflects the extent to which these skills
have been acquired. The laboratory
investigations and project work, growing
in complexity as the student progresses,
are assessed to explicitly measure the
acquisition of the ability to handle
experimental equipment, plan
measurements in a logical fashion,
analyse the results produced and
communicate them through printed and
verbal media.
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies
Methods of Assessment
Analytic thinking and critical analysis permeate
any study of physics. Therefore they also
permeate all forms of assessment.
Students will only be successful if they plan their
own timetables of work, outside formal classes,
to maintain a balance between their different
modules and between study and other pursuits.
Much of their work is done individually, though in
the laboratory and project-based work, team
working is encouraged and implicitly assessed
Most of the assessment, in examinations,
assignments, laboratory reports and
project dissertations, is based on
students’ written presentation. Feedback
on assignment submission is designed
partly to enhance the students’ skills in
this area.
combine their physical and mathematical understanding to develop
insights into physical phenomena.
perform and report upon laboratory investigations aimed to solve a
range of practical problems.
Learning Outcomes: Transferable Skills
On the completion of this course successful students will have
developed:
skills of analytic thinking and critical analysis;
organisational skills and time management;
presentational skills, in both written and oral form, of mathematical,
graphical and tabular material;
the ability to work independently;
the ability to meet deadlines.
Learning Outcomes: Knowledge and Understanding
On the completion of this course successful students will have
developed knowledge and understanding of:
the application of basic mathematical and computational methods to
physics problems;
the use of these basic techniques in areas of physics, such as classical
mechanics, relativity, optics, electricity and magnetism, quantum and
statistical mechanics, medical physics and astronomy;
basic principles of experimental physics, including the handling of
experimental equipment, the planning of experiments and their analysis;
the application of physics to radiation and matter in various forms
including crystals, semiconductors, atoms, nuclei;
a selection of more specialist optional topics in physics
Learning Outcomes: Subject Specific Skills
On the completion of this course successful students will have
developed
a broad range of skills applicable to physics;
a high level of numeracy;
their ability to construct derivations of key physics laws;
an ability to construct computer programs to aid in the solution of
physics problems;
their ability to formulate physics situations in mathematical terms, and to
express mathematical solutions in the context in which problems were
originally posed;
an awareness of ways in which physics and its applications are of
importance in the world of work.
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies
Methods of Assessment
Lectures constitute the foundation for the
presentation of the knowledge and
understanding required of successful students.
These are augmented by a range of measures –
tutorials, problems classes, practical classes –
as appropriate.
Model answers to all assignments are
made available to students. These
assignments typically count towards 10%
of the final module mark.
Assignments, comprising sets of questions
relevant to the material recently covered in
lectures, form the major vehicle for a student’s
learning of the various areas of physics.
Assignments, four per module, are marked
typically within one week and returned to the
students to provide individual feedback on
progress.
Assessment is mainly through formal
examinations at the end of each module.
Additionally practical work is assessed
through laboratory reports one per
experiment. In the context of project
work, knowledge and understanding are
assessed through the write-up or
dissertation, and poster or verbal
presentation of the project work
Teaching/Learning Methods and Strategies
Methods of Assessment
Lectures provide a basis for learning the
cornerstone theories and approaches to solving
problems, supported by the assignments aimed
at developing a breadth and depth of physics
ability. Practical skills are acquired through doing
a series of laboratory experiments/projects of
increasing difficulty across the broad range of the
subject. Confidence is thereby engendered, and
this is enhanced through discussion in tutorials
and problems classes.
We link closely with the University
Careers Service who provide talks
relating to careers options for physicists;
we are proud to produce some of the
most employable physics graduates in
the UK.
Assessment is primarily through formal
examinations, augmented by
assessments set throughout lecture
courses (typically four per module),
practical assignments and project
dissertations.
Programme Requirements
Module Title
Module
Code
Level/
stage
Credits
Availability
S1
Duration
Pre-requisite
S2
Assessment
Core
Option
Coursework %
Examination %
At Stage 1 Students are required to take the four compulsory modules AMA1001, AMA1002, PHY1011, PHY1022 plus either PHY11012 and PHY1024 or PMA1012 and
PMA1014.
Vector Algebra & Dynamics
AMA1001
I
20
12 Weeks
A-level Maths B
Foundation Physics 1
PHY1011
I
20
12 Weeks
I
20
12 Weeks
I
20
12 Weeks
PHYF011 and
PHYF022 or A-phys
(C) & A-maths (C)
At least A-level
Maths & AS-level
Physics or equiv.
A-level Maths B
Computational Methods
PHY1012
Numbers, Sets and
Sequences
PMA1012
Waves and Vector Fields
AMA1002
I
20
12 Weeks
AMA1001 (corequisite)
Foundation Physics 2
PHY1022
I
20
12 Weeks
PHY1011 (corequisite)
Computational Modelling in
Physics
PHY1024
I
20
12 Weeks
PHY1012 (corequisite)
Analysis and Linear Algebra
PMA1014
I
20
12 Weeks
A-level Maths B
PMA1012 (corequisite)
10
90
30
70
100
100
20
80
30
70
100
100
Module Title
Module
Code
Level/
stage
Credits
Availability
S1
Duration
Pre-requisite
S2
Assessment
Core
Option
Coursework %
Examination %
At Stage 2 Students must take an approved combination of Level 2 modules chosen from the table below and of total weight 120 CAT Credits. The choice must include
AMA2001, AMA2003, PHY2081, PHY2082 and PHY2084 At stage 2 students should take note of pre-requisites for Level 3 modules before finalising their choice of level 2
module.
AMA2001
AMA1001 and
Classical Mechanics
20
12 Weeks
II
AMA1002
Methods of Applied
Mathematics
AMA2003
II
20
12 Weeks
None
Modern Physics
PHY2081
II
20
12 Weeks
PHY1011 and
PHY1022
Astronomy
PHY2083
II
20
12 Weeks
PHY1011 and
PHY1022
Numerical Analysis
AMA2004
II
20
12 Weeks
None
Fluid Mechanics
AMA2005
II
20
12 Weeks
AMA1002
Physics of the Solid State
PHY2082
II
20
12 Weeks
PHY1011 and
PHY1022
Optics, Electricity and
Magnetism
PHY2084
II
20
12 Weeks
PHY1011 and
PHY1022
Atoms, Nuclei and Radiation
PHY2085
II
20
12 Weeks
PHY1011 and
PHY1022
100
100
30
70
30
70
40
60
100
30
70
30
70
30
70
Module Title
Module
Code
Level/
stage
Availability
S1
Duration
Pre-requisite
S2
Assessment
Core
Option
Coursework %
Examination %
At Stage 3 Students must take an approved combination of six Level 3 modules normally chosen from the list below. AMA3001, AMA3002, AMA3003 and AMA3013 are
compulsory.
Electromagnetic Theory
AMA3001
III
20
12 Weeks
None
Quantum Theory
AMA3002
III
20
12 Weeks
None
Advanced Numerical
Analysis
AMA3004
III
20
12 Weeks
AMA2004
Partial Differential Equations
AMA3006
III
20
12 Weeks
None
Solid State Physics
PHY3012
III
20
12 Weeks
PHY2082
Tensor Field Theory
AMA3003
III
20
12 Weeks
None
Calculus of Variations &
Hamiltonian Mechanics
AMA3013
III
20
12 Weeks
None
Astrophysics
PHY3023
III
20
12 Weeks
None
100
100
30
70
100
30
70
100
100
30
Approved by Director of Education:
Print Name: ……………………………………………………..
Signature: …………………………………………
70
Date: ……………………………..