Applied Sciences and Engineering Minor
Department of Applied Physical Sciences
1129 Murray Hall, CB# 3050
(919) 843-9334
Richard Superfine, Chair
Rich Goldberg, Director of Undergraduate Studies
The applied sciences and engineering minor is designed to train students with an engineering and entrepreneurial mindset. You will build on the foundation from your math and science courses, and engage in hands-on engineering applications of real-world challenges.
Join the minor to learn about materials sciences, optics, fluid mechanics, sensors, and more.
- Model and simulate systems using modern engineering tools and software
- Design and build systems for real-world applications using engineering tools in the BeAM makerspace and across campus
- Use fundamental principles in math and sciences to address applications in at least one area of engineering, such as material science, environmental engineering, instrumentation, or optics
- Communicate to a wide range of audiences in both oral and written form
- Understand the ethical and professional responsibilities of engineers
- Work within teams to design solutions and solve problems
Requirements
In addition to the program requirements listed below, students must:
- take at least nine hours of their minor "core" requirements at UNC–Chapel Hill
- earn a minimum of 12 hours of C or better in the minor (some minors require more)
For more information, please consult the degree requirements section of the catalog.
Prerequisite Courses
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| MATH 231 | Calculus of Functions of One Variable I H | 4 |
| MATH 232 | Calculus of Functions of One Variable II H | 4 |
| MATH 233 | Calculus of Functions of Several Variables H | 4 |
| Select one: | 4 | |
| General Physics I | ||
| General Physics I: For Students of the Life Sciences | ||
| Mechanics H | ||
| Introductory Calculus-based Mechanics and Relativity | ||
| Select one: | 4 | |
| General Physics II | ||
| General Physics II: For Students of the Life Sciences | ||
| Electromagnetism and Optics H | ||
| Introductory Calculus-based Electromagnetism and Quanta | ||
| CHEM 101 & 101L | General Descriptive Chemistry I and Quantitative Chemistry Laboratory I | 4 |
| CHEM 102 & 102L | General Descriptive Chemistry II and Quantitative Chemistry Laboratory II H | 4 |
| Select one course: | 3 | |
| Introduction to Programming H | ||
| Introduction to Scientific Programming | ||
| Total Hours | 31 | |
| H | Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply. |
The minor consists of five courses for a total of 15 credit hours.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Core Requirements | ||
| APPL 101 | Exploring Engineering | 3 |
| APPL 110 | Introduction to Design and Making: Developing Your Personal Design Potential | 3 |
| Select one course from the following list: | 3 | |
| Developing Your Sixth Sense: Designing Sensors and Electrical Circuits to Make Measurements | ||
| Materials Science and Engineering: Living in a Material World | ||
| Fluid Relationships: An Intuition Building Approach to Fluid Mechanics | ||
| Physical Computing | ||
| Engineering Tools for Environmental Problem Solving | ||
| Select two engineering topic courses from the list below. | 6 | |
| Total Hours | 15 | |
Engineering Topic Classes
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Applied Physical Sciences | ||
| APPL 405 | Convergent Engineering: Team-Science Approaches to Discovery and Innovation | 3 |
| APPL 412 | Turning Your Entrepreneurial Ideas Into Reality | 3 |
| APPL/CHEM 420 | Introduction to Polymers | 3 |
| APPL/CHEM 421 | Synthesis of Polymers | 3 |
| APPL 430 | Optical Instrumentation for Scientists and Engineers | 3 |
| APPL 435 | Nanophotonics | 3 |
| APPL 465 | Sponge Bob Square Pants and Other Soft Materials | 3 |
| APPL/CHEM 470 | Fundamentals of Materials Science | 3 |
| APPL/CHEM/PHYS 472 | Chemistry and Physics of Electronic Materials Processing | 3 |
| APPL 495 | Mentored Research in Applied Physical Sciences | 3 |
| Biology | ||
| BIOL 226 | Mathematical Methods for Quantitative Biology | 3 |
| BIOL 431/BMME 435/PHYS 405 | Biological Physics | 3 |
| BIOL 534/MATH 564 | Mathematical Modeling in the Life Sciences | 3 |
| BIOL 537 | Biotechnology and Synthetic Biology | 3 |
| BIOL 551 | Comparative Biomechanics | 3 |
| BIOL/MATH 553 | Mathematical and Computational Models in Biology | 3 |
| BIOL 554 | Introduction to Computational Neuroscience | 3 |
| Chemistry | ||
| CHEM/APPL 420 | Introduction to Polymers | 3 |
| CHEM/APPL 421 | Synthesis of Polymers | 3 |
| CHEM 441 & 441L | Intermediate Analytical Chemistry and Intermediate Analytical Chemistry Laboratory | 4 |
| CHEM 445 | Electroanalytical Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 448 | Mass Spectrometry | 3 |
| CHEM 449 | Microfabricated Chemical Measurement Systems | 3 |
| CHEM/APPL 470 | Fundamentals of Materials Science | 3 |
| CHEM/APPL/PHYS 472 | Chemistry and Physics of Electronic Materials Processing | 3 |
| Computer Science | ||
| COMP 433 | Mobile Computing Systems | 3 |
| COMP/PHYS 447 | Quantum Computing | 3 |
| COMP 523 | Software Engineering Laboratory | 4 |
| COMP 541 | Digital Logic and Computer Design | 4 |
| COMP 560 | Artificial Intelligence | 3 |
| COMP 562 | Introduction to Machine Learning | 3 |
| COMP 581 | Introduction to Robotics H | 3 |
| Environmental Sciences and Engineering | ||
| ENVR 451 | Elements of Chemical Reactor Engineering | 3 |
| ENVR 452/GEOL 560/MASC 560/PHYS 660 | Fluid Dynamics | 3 |
| ENVR 453 | Groundwater Hydrology | 3 |
| ENVR/ENEC 468 | Temporal GIS and Space/Time Geostatistics for the Environment and Public Health | 3 |
| ENVR/ENEC 470 | Environmental Risk Assessment | 3 |
| ENVR/GEOL/MASC 480 | Modeling of Marine and Earth Systems | 1-3 |
| ENVR 671 | Environmental Physics I | 3 |
| ENVR 672 | Environmental Physics II | 3 |
| Marine Sciences | ||
| MASC/ENEC/GEOL 415 | Environmental Systems Modeling | 3 |
| MASC 460 | Fluid Dynamics of the Environment | 3 |
| MASC/ENVR/GEOL 480 | Modeling of Marine and Earth Systems | 1-3 |
| MASC/GEOL 560/ENVR 452/PHYS 660 | Fluid Dynamics | 3 |
| MASC 561 | Time Series and Spatial Data Analysis | 3 |
| MASC 562 | Turbulent Boundary Layers | 3 |
| Mathematics | ||
| MATH 347 | Linear Algebra for Applications | 3 |
| MATH 528 | Mathematical Methods for the Physical Sciences I | 3 |
| MATH 529 | Mathematical Methods for the Physical Sciences II | 3 |
| MATH/BIOL 553 | Mathematical and Computational Models in Biology | 3 |
| MATH/BIOL 534 | Elements of Modern Algebra | 3 |
| MATH 566 | Introduction to Numerical Analysis | 3 |
| Neurosciences (restricted to NSCI minors and majors) | ||
| NSCI 421 | Principles of Brain Circuits | 3 |
| NSCI 423 | Neurotechnology in Modern Neuroscience Research | 3 |
| Physics | ||
| PHYS 331 | Numerical Techniques for the Sciences I | 4 |
| PHYS 332 | Numerical Techniques for the Sciences II | 4 |
| PHYS 401 | Mechanics I | 3 |
| PHYS 405/BIOL 431/BMME 435 | Biological Physics | 3 |
| PHYS/BMME 441 | Thermal Physics | 3 |
| PHYS/COMP 447 | Quantum Computing | 3 |
| PHYS 461 | Introduction to Medical Physics | 3 |
| PHYS/APPL/CHEM 472 | Chemistry and Physics of Electronic Materials Processing | 3 |
| PHYS 515 | Optics | 3 |
| PHYS 529 | Introduction to Magnetic Resonance | 3 |
| PHYS 660/ENVR 452/GEOL 560/MASC 560 | Fluid Dynamics | 3 |
| H | Honors version available. An honors course fulfills the same requirements as the nonhonors version of that course. Enrollment and GPA restrictions may apply. |
