About the Department

An Atmosphere of Support and Encouragement

In the Physics department at WPI we believe that the path to a successful career is easiest to navigate when you have a support system in place to help you at every crossroads. To that end, we deliberately foster a welcoming, accommodating environment in a many ways, including small class sizes that make it easy to get to know your fellow students; fully-engaged faculty who are always accessible and eager to help you succeed; and an Independent Study Program that lets you choose the subject matter you wish to study-so you may take control of your own education.

Strategically Sized for Individual Attention

With a 4:1 student-to-faculty ratio the Physics department is perfectly equipped to encourage close connections and collaborations between students and our internationally-recognized faculty members. Our classes are intentionally kept small to allow students more time for personal interaction with professors.

Conducting Groundbreaking Research in World-Class Facilities

Our world-renowned faculty members are actively working every day on discoveries in such fields as nuclear and particle physics, modern and classical optics, statistical and solid-state physics, electromagnetism, astro-physics, and much more. Faculty members inspire both undergraduate and graduate students to become engaged in research projects - which often leads to students making important contributions and writing articles for research journals before graduation.