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               Nationally Ranked Programs
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    CSU's physics department ranks 5'th in the nation among Master's granting departments that averaged 7 or more Physics Bachelor's degrees per year in 2002, 2003 and 2004, according to August 2006, American Institute of Physics Report R-151.41, Table 6.

    Our Master of Science in Physics program is in the "strongest professional programs" category, ranked 4'th, according to the American Institute of Physics April 2005 report. The criteria used by AIP include enrollment, graduates' employability, the availability of evening courses, and the presence of an active external advisory committee. The CSU program is in the same category with programs from prestigious universities such as Columbia University, University of Oregon, University of Washington in Seattle, and the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.

    Students collaborate with expert instructors on cutting edge research. Combining solid academics and real- world lab experience helps educate students who are fully prepared to pursue advanced degrees or contribute their knowledge and skills in the workforce. The March/April 2007 issue of InterActions Magazine, published by the American Association of Physics Teachers, contains Professor Kenneth Krane's article "Help Wanted." He focused on what physics departments should do to increase student enrollment. Table I shows the honor roll of departments whose enrollment increases significantly exceed the national average. The CSU Physics Department is listed on the honor roll, along with physics departments from prestigious schools such as the University of California Santa Barbara, the University of Maryland, the University of Minnesota, the University of Florida, and Brown University.

    All the courses are taught by Ph.D. faculty with degrees from Harvard, MIT, Carnegie-Mellon, and other prominent universities. These outstanding instructors share with students their in-depth expertise of physics, expertise that continues to grow via their ongoing study of macromolecular crystallography, solid state physics, optics, and statistical physics.

    The main strength of the Physics Department is the high quality of its faculty with outstanding contributions in research and dedication to the education of our students. Several faculty are supported by NIH, NSF and NASA grants on protein crystallography, materials and optics research. The department has close interdisciplinary collaborations with the Cleveland Clinic Foundation for the MS with emphasis on Medical Physics program, and with Case Western Reserve University and NASA for materials and optics research. These collaborations offer our students opportunities to participate in research at the cutting edge of applied science. All faculty are enthusiastic and dedicated to high quality teaching. As a matter of fact the author of the standard university physics textbook, used all over the world, is a member of our department.