How to Apply to Physics at Clark University: A Physics B.S. With Comprehensive, Applied and General Tracks, a Minimum of 18 Courses, Major and Track Chosen in Sophomore Year, a 4+1 Accelerated Master’s With a Full-Tuition Fifth Year, a 3/2 Engineering Program With Columbia, and Routes for Domestic, International (Including Chinese) and Transfer Applicants

At Clark University, in Worcester, Massachusetts, physics is offered by the Department of Physics. Here is what you need to know, based on Clark’s website, for domestic applicants, international applicants (including students at high schools in China) and transfer students. Mathematics, chemistry, computer science and engineering are not covered here beyond the 3/2 engineering program where they overlap with physics; this site has a separate computer science guide.

1. Degrees and tracks

• Degree: the program page is titled “Physics, B.S.” and is marked as a 4+1 option, major and minor. The page says the physics major requires a minimum of 18 courses and can be customized to your interests.
• Three tracks: comprehensive, applied and general physics. The track chart (PDF) lists the goals as: comprehensive for physics graduate programs, engineering, industry, finance and education; applied for engineering, industry, finance and education; general for education, policy, pre-health and patent law. Shared content on the chart: PHYS 120–121 and MATH 120/124–121/125 (introductory physics and calculus), PHYS 130, 131 and 123, and PHYS 150 and 160; the comprehensive and applied tracks both add PHYS 161 and MATH 130 and 131; the comprehensive track also takes PHYS 171, 251 and 127; the applied track takes PHYS 127 or 219, an additional elective from a list (PHYS 127, 167, 169, 171, 219, 243, 251, 299) and one more elective; the general track takes two introductory science courses outside physics, a peer learning assistant (PLA) role in an introductory physics course, and Education 152. In the general track PHYS 110/111 may stand in for PHYS 120/121. The content and credit of each course is in the university catalog, which was not among the pages read.
• Featured courses on the program page: PHYS 127 Computer Simulation of Physical Systems, PHYS 169 Information Theory, Inference, and Networks, and PHYS 243 Technology of Renewable Energy (hands-on work with Clark’s microgrid). The page also mentions electives in pre-professional physics, biological physics, fluid dynamics, electronics and computational physics.
• Capstone: the program page says you can choose a capstone topic near the end of junior year or earlier; the major map says the capstone may be independent research or high-level coursework satisfying your track’s requirements. The requirements for each track are not stated in the pages read; see the catalog or ask the department.
• Honors: in junior year you might be accepted into the physics honors program and write a thesis with a professor; recent thesis topics include topographic and spectroscopic analysis of cuprous oxide nanocubes, chaotic biophysical systems, and building a vertical wind turbine for the Math-Physics building nanogrid. The entry conditions are not published in the pages read.
• Teaching: the program page points students interested in teaching high school physics to the Noyce Scholarship program.
• Accreditation: the pages read do not mention ABET; not published.

2. The 3/2 engineering program and the 4+1 accelerated master’s

• 3/2 Engineering: a five-year program with Columbia University. For three years you take pre-engineering science courses plus arts, humanities and social science courses at Clark, then two years of advanced engineering study at Columbia’s Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, earning a B.A. from Clark and a B.S. in engineering from Columbia. It is open to all Clark students, and the required curriculum must be started in the first year; students whose placement exams do not place them into calculus (MATH 120) and composition (ENG 020) in the first semester may need a summer semester to stay on schedule. Students are advised to major in a field that overlaps Columbia’s entrance requirements, and physics is one. You apply to Columbia’s engineering school through the program committee in junior year, with the aid application at the same time; the page says financial aid is not available for foreign students. Whether admission to Columbia is guaranteed is not stated in the pages read. Common first-year courses include MATH 124 and 125 (Columbia also accepts MATH 120 and 121) and PHYS 120 and 121 (PHYS 110 is not acceptable). The physics sample schedule says physics majors need summer courses or five courses in one semester to finish on time. Note that the 3/2 page and the physics program page say the Clark degree is a B.A., while the physics program is titled B.S.; the two differ, so confirm with the department.
• 4+1 Accelerated Master’s (Physics B.S. | M.S.): one more year of study with a 100% tuition scholarship for the fifth year. Conditions: an average GPA of 3.2 or higher in courses toward the physics major; a meeting with the physics accelerated master’s advisor; an online application by April 15 of junior year with a recommendation from the faculty member willing to be your research advisor; decisions by the end of March of senior year. Requirements: 10 course units including 4 core graduate courses passed with B- or better (from PHYS 301, 302, 305, 306, 309, 310, 319, 327, 351 and 367), at least 5 thesis units, a written thesis and an oral defense; two core graduate courses (or one plus PHYS 303) are taken in senior year and count toward both the major and the master’s; thesis research begins no later than fall of senior year, and you work full time on research in the summers before and after the fifth year. The tuition page also lists a USD 1,250 per year accelerated master’s administrative fee.

3. How admission works and deadlines

• Applying to a major: the application pages read set no separate admission standards by school or major and none for physics; whether the application asks you to choose a major is not published. The physics major map suggests choosing your major and track in sophomore year with a physics faculty adviser, and in first year emailing physics@clarku.edu to visit the department and laboratories. Conditions for moving into physics later are not stated in the pages read.
• Deadlines (no year is printed; verify the dates for fall 2027 entry): Early Decision I (binding) November 1, results in late December; Early Action November 1, results in mid-January; Early Decision II January 15, results in early March; Regular Decision January 15, results in late March. International students follow the same deadlines. Clark also admits first-year students for the spring semester, applying by November 1. The apply page text says Early Decision applicants hear before Thanksgiving (which differs from the table’s late December), and have access to more scholarship funding and a higher admission rate.
• Application system: Common App, or the Coalition App with Scoir (submit only one); neither has a fee.
• Testing: test-optional since 2012, and scores are not factored into merit aid.
• Recommendations: international applicants need two (one from a counselor, one from a teacher); the process page suggests an academic teacher who knows you well. The pages read do not ask for a science teacher.
• Interview: optional but strongly encouraged.
• Profile of first-year students: the application process page prints “Average High School GPA: 3.68” and the first-year student profile page prints “Average High School GPA: 3.83”, which do not match; the profile page also says the middle 50% SAT of the 14% of admitted students who submitted scores was 1310–1450.

4. Prerequisites

• The pages read state no high school physics or calculus prerequisite for the physics major and no math or physics placement arrangement; not published. Ask the department (physics@clarku.edu) or admissions.
• The 3/2 page notes that students who do not place into calculus (MATH 120) and composition (ENG 020) in the first semester may need summer courses; the physics track chart starts with PHYS 120–121 and MATH 120/124–121/125.
• AP / IB / A-Level credit: an AP score of 4 or 5 earns one unit (the page’s definition); first-year students may receive at most eight units (two semesters) combining AP and/or college courses taken in high school. IB: an IB Diploma with at least 36 points and 5 or higher in all six exams earns eight units; an IB Diploma of at least 24 points earns four units; without the diploma, one unit per Higher Level exam scored 5 or higher, up to three units. A-Levels with a C or higher earn up to eight units; provisional results are not accepted. Which physics course AP Physics 1/2, C: Mechanics, C: E&M, IB Physics or calculus replaces is not listed in the pages read; ask the Academic Advising Center (advising@clarku.edu). One Clark unit equals four semester hours; the degree needs at least 32 units, at least 16 of them in residence.
• Labs: the department lists teaching laboratories for computer simulations, electronics, optics, atomic and nuclear physics and materials science, and research-grade equipment including a scanning tunneling microscope, an atomic force microscope, a SQUID magnetometer and an X-ray computed tomography system.

5. Undergraduate research and awards

• The department wants undergraduates to move early from classroom work to research. Its page says most physics majors start in junior year but some begin in first or sophomore year; research usually connects to a faculty mentor and is broadly concentrated in condensed matter physics. Undergraduates often publish in refereed journals with faculty, present at the annual ClarkFEST, and can submit to the student-run Scholarly Undergraduate Research Journal.
• The program page says students can use a 50-tesla pulsed magnetic field laboratory, described as one of the highest magnetic fields available at any university in the United States.
• The research page lists summer awards and internships (Bickman, Weiller, Milburn, Erickson, Geschwind and others) with recipients’ names; how to apply and the amounts are not stated in the pages read. Clark also has funding for undergraduate internships, research or creative projects, applied for at the Career Connections Center.
• The program page lists two academic awards: the Roy S. Andersen ’43 Award and the Albert C. Erickson ’30 Academic Award (for a senior with outstanding work and unusual promise in physics and mathematics).

6. Domestic applicants

• Admission: the review reads the whole transcript and also considers involvement and recommendations. The pages read do not describe any priority or guarantee for Massachusetts residents; not published. Transfer applicants with a Massachusetts associate degree and a 2.50 GPA do have the MA Transfer Guarantee (see the transfer section).
• Tuition: the cost page lists a single tuition figure with no in-state/out-of-state split: USD 62,070 for 2026-2027 (see costs below).
• Scholarships and aid: all admitted students are automatically considered for merit scholarships, with no separate application and no test scores needed; the profile page says the average merit scholarship is USD 41,000 and 66% of first-year students receive need-based aid. U.S. citizens, permanent residents and eligible non-citizens file the FAFSA (Clark’s code is 002139), due by the same deadlines as the admission application. The Presidential Scholarship covers tuition, room and board and goes to about five students a year; the cost page says to apply by the admission deadline, while the international page says there is no separate application and all admitted students are considered.

7. International applicants

• Materials: the Common App or Coalition application (free); transcripts for the last three years; two recommendation letters (one counselor, one teacher); proof of English proficiency; SAT/ACT optional; and the International Student Certification of Finances and Financial Assistance Application Form, completed on the applicant status page after you apply. All documents must be in English; you may include the originals and certified translations.
• English: if English is not your native language, submit an official TOEFL, IELTS, Duolingo or PTE report. There are no specific minimums, but general indicators are: TOEFL 4.5 overall on the new scale (no sub-score below 4) or 85 overall on the old scale (no sub-score below 20); IELTS 6.5 (no sub-score below 6); Duolingo 120 (no sub-score below 100); PTE 61 (no sub-score below 55); PEXT 71 (no sub-score below 65). Meeting them does not guarantee admission. Applicants who meet the academic requirements but could benefit from more language support may be recommended Clark’s English for Academic Success Program (EAS) for 1–4 semesters first.
• Need-aware admission: the international page says admission is need-aware, so an application may be denied if the financial need indicated exceeds what Clark can offer. It says international students typically pay around USD 40,000 per year after scholarships and aid, with a total cost of attendance of approximately USD 85,000.
• Aid: all admitted students are automatically considered for merit scholarships. The Presidential Scholarship goes to 3–5 students a year according to the international page and to about five according to the cost page; recipients pay about USD 12,000–15,000 a year of additional costs. Davis United World College Scholars from UWC schools can receive a need-based grant of up to USD 15,000 per year.

8. Applicants from China

• Transcript years: at least three complete years of educational data. For countries like China with a 6-3-3 system, Clark needs a middle school transcript showing at least the final year (the U.S. equivalent of 9th grade) in addition to the first two years of the three-year secondary school. An application with only two years of credentials cannot be reviewed.
• Gaokao: the website does not say how Gaokao results are used; whether materials from the high school graduation exam (huikao) are needed is also not published. Write to intadmissions@clarku.edu.
• A-Level, IB, AP: Clark gives credit for all three; the rules are in the prerequisites section above.
• The first-year profile page lists India, China, Vietnam, Ethiopia, Nepal and Kazakhstan among the top countries of its students; this is printed information and does not mean a China-specific policy exists.
• Interview: optional but strongly encouraged, in person or virtual, or recorded through InitialView or Vericant; for international students it can also supplement English evaluation.

9. Costs and scholarships

• 2026-2027: tuition USD 62,070; room (standard double) USD 8,580; board (standard plan) USD 5,780; student activity and programming fee USD 460; orientation fee USD 400; health and wellness fee USD 680; total billed charges USD 77,970. Other possible expenses: transportation USD 250, books USD 900, miscellaneous USD 800, health insurance USD 2,833; total estimated costs USD 82,753.
• Department scholarships: the pages read describe no physics-specific scholarship; not published. The department’s summer research funding is described above. On outcomes, the program page prints: “Graduate schools attended by physics graduates from Clark include: University of Chicago, University of Southern California, Carnegie Mellon University, Cornell University, Harvard University.” The careers page says physics graduates are in demand in engineering, research and development, physical science, education, medicine, law, business and the military.

10. Transfer students

• Who counts as a transfer applicant: you hold a final high school credential and have either matriculated as a full-time, degree-seeking student elsewhere or enrolled in at least 12 semester credit hours of college-level coursework afterward. Clark welcomes about 75 transfer students a year, fall and spring combined.
• Deadlines: fall entry is described differently on different pages: the transfer page says rolling, February 1 – August 21; the apply and process pages say February 1 – June 1; the cost and financial aid page says February 1 – May 1; the articulation agreement text says May 1. Spring is September 1 – November 1 everywhere. Follow the transfer admissions office and apply early.
• Materials: Clark’s own transfer application or the Transfer Common App (no fee); one letter of recommendation, preferably from faculty at the most recent college; a mid-term report if you are in your first full-time college semester; the final high school transcript; all college transcripts; a college report form; test scores optional. Applicants with a high school GPA below 2.5 must complete at least one full year of college courses (8 Clark units) before being considered.
• Credit: at most 16 units may transfer, with grades of C or higher from accredited institutions; Clark does not pre-evaluate courses, evaluation happens at admission; outside seminars, internships, remedial and vocational courses do not transfer. How completed calculus and physics sequences are placed against the physics major is not stated in the pages read; ask the department.
• Agreements and guarantee: articulation agreements with Mount Wachusett Community College and Quinsigamond Community College (a general guarantee of admission if you earn the specified associate degree, have taken several courses above 100-level and meet the other criteria), and the MA Transfer Guarantee for Massachusetts associate degrees with a minimum GPA of 2.50.
• International transfers: English proof is required; those coming from colleges outside the U.S. need a course-by-course foreign credential evaluation, without which the application is not considered; national examination results such as A-levels are optional.

Checklist

Domestic applicants:

• Apply by November 1 (ED I, EA) or January 15 (ED II, RD), free; Presidential Scholarship by the admission deadline; file the FAFSA
• Ask the physics department for advice on high school physics and calculus preparation

International applicants (including China):

• Prepare TOEFL, IELTS, Duolingo or PTE scores (indicators TOEFL 85, IELTS 6.5, Duolingo 120)
• Send three years of transcripts (including the final middle school year) and two recommendation letters; book an interview; complete the finances and aid form on the status page
• Ask admissions how Gaokao and huikao materials should be submitted

Transfer students:

• Confirm the fall deadline with the transfer office; get a credential evaluation for study outside the U.S.; ask the department how physics sequences are placed

Sources: Clark University, Physics, B.S.; Department of Physics; Undergraduate programs; Undergraduate research; Learning outcomes; Careers and internships; Physics major map (PDF); Physics major tracks (PDF); 3-2 Engineering program; Physics 4+1 Accelerated Master’s; Apply and deadlines; Application process; International students; First-year student profile; Cost and financial aid; 2026-2027 tuition and fees; Transfer students; Transfer credit and advanced standing. Costs are for 2026-2027 and deadline pages show no year; check Clark’s website for the latest.