How to Apply to Physics at Colgate University: The Department of Physics and Astronomy’s Physics and Astronomy-Physics Majors, Whose Application Pages Do Not Ask for a Major and Whose Core Courses Are Packed Into the First Two Years, and Admission and Prerequisites for U.S., International (Including Chinese) and Transfer Students

Colgate University is a private university of the liberal arts in Hamilton, New York. Physics is taught by the Department of Physics and Astronomy, whose majors, according to its home page, are Physics, Astronomy-Physics, Astrogeophysics (interdisciplinary) and Physical Science (interdisciplinary with chemistry and mathematics), with minors in physics and astronomy. This guide concentrates on the physics major and mentions Astronomy-Physics and Astrogeophysics only where they overlap with physics; the Physical Science major page and the minor pages were not read. Mathematics, chemistry, computer science and engineering are not covered. It follows Colgate’s own pages for fall 2027 entry, with sections for U.S. students, international students, students from China and transfer students.

1. Programs and how admission works

• Majors and tracks: the physics major requires PHYS 125, 201, 205, 232, 233, 334, 336 and 410 plus three upper-level electives (see section 2). The department’s “Curricular Guidance” page suggests course choices for different goals (informal suggestions, not formal tracks): biophysics or biomedical engineering, computational physics, physics with an applied mathematics minor, condensed matter and materials, science writing, renewable energy and sustainability, econophysics, preparation for architecture graduate programs, teaching high school physics and preparing for law school. Astronomy-Physics is for students interested in astronomy or astrophysics, and Astrogeophysics is a multidepartment program on the solar system and planetary materials.
• Do you choose a major when you apply? The first-year, international and transfer pages we read do not ask applicants to choose a major and do not describe a separate admission cutoff or cap for physics; this is not published there. The pages say only that submitting an arts portfolio does not require you to major in the arts or affect academic placement.
• When and how to declare: the department and admission pages we read do not state when to declare a major, any grade condition or the procedure; this is not published there, so ask the department (chair Rebecca Metzler, 315-228-7723) or the Registrar and advising offices. The curricular guidance page notes that its default schedule has first-years take PHYS 125 and Calculus I in the first term.
• Graduation conditions (2026-27 catalog): a grade of C- or better is expected in each department course required for the major (“there are no exceptions to this policy”), and the cumulative GPA for all courses counted toward the major must be at least 2.00.
• Labs and capstone: many physics courses have lab components. PHYS 410 (Advanced Topics and Experiments) is the senior capstone, taken in the fall of senior year: each student can work individually with a faculty member on a research project, reported in a professional-style paper, several talks and an end-of-semester symposium. The department says students who want to continue may do so in the spring, and in some years as many as half do.
• Honors: to graduate with honors, students must be invited by the department chair, in consultation with faculty, to do an honors thesis, normally after exceptional performance in PHYS 410. Also required: at least two additional 300- or 400-level physics or astronomy courses beyond the major minimum (C- or better), a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5 in the 300- and 400-level classes used for the major and honors, and an honors thesis that is completed, defended and presented publicly (evaluated by department faculty and an external reviewer), usually via PHYS 492 or ASTR 492 in the spring of senior year. Neither honors nor high honors is guaranteed.
• Undergraduate research: the student resources page suggests asking faculty about openings, says semester research jobs are posted under Student Employment, and says on-campus summer research positions are generally announced in the first week of January. It also lists many off-campus summer research and internship programs and marks which are open to international students.
• Department awards (catalog): the Edwin Foster Kingsbury Prizes, the Joseph C. Amato and Anthony F. Aveni Award for Student Research, the Physics and Astronomy Alumni Awards and the Physics and Astronomy Department Founders Award; amounts are not published on the pages we read.
• Outcomes: the catalog says more than half of graduating seniors in the department go to graduate school in various disciplines (many earn PhDs in physics, astronomy and engineering) and approximately 25 percent enter technical careers directly; the rest go into teaching, business, management, medicine and other areas. The curricular guidance page says about one-third of majors go directly to graduate programs in physics, astronomy, engineering or related fields. The two statements are worded differently and the pages do not reconcile them. The department home page also lists recent graduate schools and job titles.

2. Prerequisites and course sequence

• High school courses: the first-year application page we read does not list required high school courses, and does not say what high school physics or calculus a physics major needs; this is not published there, so ask admission (admission@colgate.edu).
• Physics major requirements (catalog; each college course is one credit): PHYS 125 (How Physics Sees the World, taken the first term of the first year); PHYS 201 (Mathematical Methods for Physics, 0.25 credit, in the spring of first year on the guidance schedule) and PHYS 205 (usually with PHYS 233 in the fall of sophomore year); PHYS 232 (Introduction to Mechanics); PHYS 233 (Introduction to Electricity and Magnetism); PHYS 334 (Introduction to Quantum Mechanics and Special Relativity) and PHYS 336 (Electronics), usually taken together in the spring of sophomore year; PHYS 410 (fall of senior year); and three upper-level (300 or 400) electives, excluding PHYS 334, 336, 392 and 492 and ASTR 312, 392 and 492. Mathematics: MATH 161 (Calculus I) and MATH 163 (Calculus III), “to be taken as soon as possible”. The pages word one point differently: the curricular guidance page says the physics major “requires four upper-level courses”, while the major page lists PHYS 410 plus three upper-level electives; the pages do not explain how these relate.
• Typical schedule (curricular guidance): first year, fall PHYS 125 and MATH 161, spring PHYS 232, PHYS 201 and MATH 162; second year, fall PHYS 233 and MATH 163, spring PHYS 334, 336 and 205; third year physics electives; fourth year, fall PHYS 410. Students who enter with credit for MATH 161, or earn at least a B- in MATH 161 and are allowed to move directly to MATH 163, can follow an accelerated-calculus schedule. The department explains that physics courses build on each other, but that the upper-level courses were designed to be taken in any order with prerequisites limited to the sophomore-level courses, which leaves room for choice in the last two years. Students interested in the 3-2 or 3-3 engineering plans must begin the physics and mathematics curriculum in the fall of the first year.
• Prerequisites and minimum grades (catalog): they are “strictly enforced”. Students who have not taken PHYS 125, or who received less than a C- in its lecture portion, may take PHYS 232 with the instructor’s permission. Otherwise no department course with prerequisites may be taken before a C- or better in the lecture portion of each prerequisite, except in extraordinary circumstances.
• Placement: the catalog says placement into PHYS 232 without PHYS 125 can sometimes be allowed after discussion with the chair and the PHYS 232 instructor; placing out of PHYS 232 and/or PHYS 233 is “atypical” and depends on a placement test, which students arrange with the chair before the semester begins. Majors who do not complete PHYS 125 must complete an additional upper-level course; majors who accept placement out of PHYS 232 or 233 substitute an upper-level course for each.
• AP and IB credit (catalog, pre-matriculation credit): a 4 or 5 on AP Physics 1 or AP Physics C: Mechanics earns credit for PHYS 111; a 4 or 5 on AP Physics 2 or AP Physics C: E&M earns credit for PHYS 112. Scores on international exams such as A-Levels and the International Baccalaureate that show competence equivalent to a specific department course may earn credit or placement on request to the chair; such credit cannot fulfill the university’s areas of inquiry requirement but may count toward the major. The catalog does not say how PHYS 111 and 112 relate to the required PHYS 125, 232 and 233, and the pages we read do not describe AP Calculus credit; ask the department. Pre-matriculation credit does not satisfy the Liberal Arts Core Curriculum.
• Courses for non-majors: the department offers ASTR 101, ASTR 102, PHYS 105, PHYS 111 and PHYS 112 as courses of general interest not intended for majors.
• Physics competitions: the application pages do not say how results from competitions such as USAPhO are viewed; this is not published there. The first-year page does list an optional “VIVA” research submission for applicants who have done formal research projects (due 1 November for Early Decision I and 15 January for the other rounds); it runs on a third-party platform that we did not visit.

3. Rounds, deadlines and materials

• Deadlines (the pages print no entry year, so confirm the dates for fall 2027): Early Decision I (binding) 1 November, notification mid-December; Early Decision II (binding) 15 January, notification mid-February; Regular Decision 15 January, notification late March. The pages do not list a non-binding Early Action round.
• Applications come through the Common App, the Coalition Application on Scoir or the QuestBridge Application. The application fee is $60, waived for non-U.S. citizens (not U.S. dual citizens or permanent residents), U.S. military veterans and students with College Board, NACAC and similar waivers.
• Required: two academic teacher recommendations (from core academic teachers from grades 10 to 12, submitted by a school official; no science teacher is required), a counselor recommendation, an official high school transcript and mid-year grades (by 15 February; for Early Decision I applicants a missing report does not affect application status), plus the Early Decision Agreement signed by student, parent and counselor for the binding rounds.
• Test optional: SAT/ACT are not required and not submitting is “no disadvantage”; scores can be self-reported, Colgate superscores, and admitted students who chose to have scores considered must send official scores. SAT code 2086, ACT code 2702.
• Optional materials: an arts portfolio (third-party platform), digital presence, a Glimpse video (domestic) or InitialView video (international), the VIVA research submission and other materials.

4. U.S. students

• Costs (2026-27, tuition page): tuition $76,828; housing $9,348 (first-years and sophomores on campus); food $10,008; student activity fee $462; billed charges $96,646. With estimated non-billed costs (books $1,600, transportation from $800, personal $1,128, loan fees $50), the total cost of attendance is $100,224 for first-years and sophomores on campus and $101,008 for juniors and seniors on campus. The page lists a single tuition with no in-state or out-of-state difference. Student health insurance (waivable with proof of coverage) is $1,805.
• Scholarships and aid: the pages we read do not describe merit scholarships for domestic students; this is not published there. The Colgate Commitment (from fall 2026, for U.S. citizens and permanent residents): with family income of $175,000 or less students will generally attend tuition-free; $175,000 to $200,000, generally about 5% of income toward tuition with no loans in the aid offer; $200,000 to $250,000, about 7%; $250,000 to $300,000, about 10%, with offers that may include loans; above $300,000 the University still meets 100% of demonstrated need. Assets that are higher than typical for the income level can change the amount, and the page says these figures are general and not guarantees.
• Any in-state admission preference or guarantee is not published on the pages we read.

5. International students

• Who is international: for admission purposes, non-U.S. citizens (not U.S. dual citizens, permanent residents or U.S. citizens living abroad). The requirements are the first-year checklist and international students pay no application fee.
• English proficiency: required of non-native speakers who do not attend a secondary school where English is the primary language of instruction, with one of these minimums: TOEFL iBT 4.5, IELTS 7 or Duolingo English Test 130. Scores must come from the testing agency; the TOEFL code is 2086. The page says the requirement is not waived based on SAT results.
• Transcripts and exams: current seniors send mid-year grades as soon as available, or predicted final grades from a school official if the school does not provide mid-year grades; graduates send a final transcript. Every student must send a final transcript after completing secondary school, directly from the school through the Common App, Scoir or mail, and transcripts submitted by students are not accepted. Results from external national or international exams must come from the testing agency or be emailed by a school official to admission@colgate.edu.
• Interviews: the page encourages the “most successful” applicants whose first language is not English to submit an InitialView or Vericant interview before 15 January, or 1 November for Early Decision I.
• Aid: Colgate says it meets 100% of every admitted international student’s demonstrated need and charges no application fee, but it is need-aware: financial need is considered in the review of all applicants, though the most competitive applicants are admitted whether or not they apply for aid. Aid applicants submit the CSS Profile (no paper or PDF copy). The page contradicts itself on the deadline: the international page says the CSS Profile is due 1 November for Early Decision I and 22 January for Early Decision II and Regular Decision, while its deadline table and the first-year page list 15 January for financial aid submission. Confirm with admission. The Colgate Commitment applies only to U.S. citizens and permanent residents; the page adds that international aid packages have generally not included loans.
• Contact: admission@colgate.edu.

6. Applicants from China

• The pages we read have no section for applicants from China and do not mention the Gaokao or the Huikao, so whether the Gaokao is considered is not published; contact admission (admission@colgate.edu).
• The first-year page says the official high school transcript (an official original plus an official English translation if not in English) is submitted by a school official; the international page says the final transcript is sent directly by the school and results from external national or international exams come from the testing agency or a school official; whether the Gaokao or Huikao counts as such an exam is not published.
• No credential-evaluation agency is named for first-year applicants on the pages we read.

7. Costs and department resources

• Costs are in section 4. The tuition page states that the figures are full annual costs for a student without financial aid and points to the MyinTuition and net price calculators.
• 3-2 and 3-3 engineering plans (catalog): the department offers two routes for students who want engineering: major in physics at Colgate and attend engineering graduate school, or use a combined plan. Colgate has cooperative agreements with Columbia University, Washington University and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute: with Columbia and RPI, three years at Colgate and two at the engineering school lead to bachelor’s degrees from both institutions (3-2); with Washington University, three years at the engineering school lead to a master’s degree in the third year (3-3). Eligibility requires all physics major courses through PHYS 336, PHYS 431 (or 451) and one other upper-level physics course chosen with the pre-engineering adviser, and the physics and mathematics curriculum must begin in the fall of the first year. The engineering schools’ own admission requirements vary and are not published on the pages we read.
• Teacher certification: the Department of Educational Studies offers a teacher education program for physics majors. The curricular guidance page describes three paths (a normal four-year degree, a ninth semester and a master of arts in teaching), saying the ninth semester is tuition-free and the master’s program has an 80% tuition reduction.

8. Transfer students

• Who can apply: students who have matriculated in a college-level degree program, or hold an associate degree.
• Deadlines (no year printed): fall enrollment 15 March, decisions late April; spring enrollment 1 November, decisions early December. The fee is $60, waived for non-U.S. citizens and veterans.
• Materials: the Common App for Transfer or the Coalition on Scoir transfer application (with essay); official high school transcripts; official college transcripts; a College Official’s Report; a mid-year report (the applicant records current course grades); and one academic evaluation from a college professor. Testing is optional.
• Credit: general guidance says credit goes to courses from a strong liberal arts curriculum with a C or better; C- or lower and pass/fail courses get no credit; select AP, IB and A-Levels are accepted; pre-matriculation credit does not satisfy the Liberal Arts Core Curriculum; at most 16 course credits may be transferred; and departments decide which outside courses count toward a major. The physics catalog adds that transfer credit for physics and astronomy courses needs department approval, summer courses must be pre-approved, a C or better is required, and after matriculation no more than 2 transferred course credits may count toward the physics or astronomy-physics major. Admitted students receive a preliminary credit evaluation, and faculty complete the official evaluation after admission. Transferring the equivalent of 6 to 13 Colgate credits gives sophomore standing and 14 to 16 junior standing. Whether physics sets a separate threshold for transferring in is not published.
• Aid: transfer students can apply for need-based aid and must submit all aid materials by the admission application deadline.

Checklist

U.S. students:

• Apply by 1 November (Early Decision I) or 15 January (Early Decision II or Regular Decision); $60 fee; two academic teacher recommendations, counselor recommendation and transcript
• The application pages ask for no major; the guidance schedule has PHYS 125 and calculus in the first term; C- or better in each required department course

International students (including China):

• Same deadlines; no fee; TOEFL iBT 4.5, IELTS 7 or Duolingo 130; transcript with English translation, sent by the school
• CSS Profile for aid (the deadline wording is inconsistent); ask admission whether the Gaokao is used

Transfer students:

• Fall 15 March, spring 1 November; one college professor evaluation; at most 16 credits transfer and at most 2 count toward the physics major
• No published physics-specific entry threshold

Sources: Colgate University, Department of Physics and Astronomy; Academic program (2026-27 catalog); Physics major; Astronomy-Physics major; Astrogeophysics major; Curricular guidance; Student resources; Majors and minors; Admission: first-year applicants; Admission: international applicants; Admission: transfer applicants; Tuition and fees; The Colgate Commitment. Information is for fall 2027 entry (the admission pages print no entry year; costs are 2026-27 figures); check Colgate for the latest details.