This webpage addresses the issues and procedures only for transfer students who were told they must take one or more Self-Learning Physics Modules in order to obtain transfer credit for PHYS 2305 and/or PHYS 2306.

Students transferring into Virginia Tech's College of Engineering, from another institution, may be told by a representative of the College of Engineering that their introductory physics course credits will not transfer unless they complete one or more Physics Modules. These Self-Learning Physics Modules are meant to provide the student with the topics not covered by the introductory physics course(s) which they took at their previous institution, but are required here at Virginia Tech as part of either PHYS 2305 or PHYS 2306, or both. Once the student successfully completes the required Module(s), transfer credit is obtained; failure to pass the exam administered at the end of a Module means the student must take the relevant course (either PHYS 2305, or PHYS 2306).

Students transferring into other majors at Virginia Tech may also be required to complete one or more Physics Modules before transfer credit can be given for PHYS 2305 or PHYS 2306.

This webpage gives the detailed procedure to be followed in studying and completing a Self-Learning Physics Module.

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Three modules are available for study:

1. Thermal Physics Module (covers topics from PHYS 2305)
2. Waves & Sound Module (covers topics from PHYS 2306)
3. Optics Module (covers topics from PHYS 2306)

These modules cover the topics typically missing from a transfer student's introductory physics courses. The college representative will tell the student which Module(s) need to be successfully completed to obtain transfer credit.

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If you are a transfer student seeking transfer credit through the completion of Self-Learning Physics Module(s), you should be aware that your college may have a deadline for completing the Physics Module(s). If you have not completed the Module(s) before the deadline, you will have to take PHYS 2305 and PHYS 2306 to receive credit for them -- transfer credit will not be granted. Make sure you inquire of your college administrator as to any such deadlines. The College of Engineering requires that you successfully complete and pass any Module(s) within 2 semesters of entering Virginia Tech.

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To sign up for a Module, follow these steps:

1. Upon transferring to Virginia Tech, discuss your transfer credit for introductory physics with a college administrator, or your advisor. For students transferring into the College of Engineering you should contact and discuss your situation with Vicki Langford, vicki07@vt.edu, 212 Hancock Hall, 231-6643. You will be told which Module(s) you will need to complete, if any, in order to receive transfer credit for any introductory physics courses you took at your previous institution.


2. Once you know what Module(s) you need to do, fill out and submit the online Physics Modules Sign Up Form. An email message containing your information will be automatically sent to the Module Administrator (currently that person is Dr. John Simonetti, jhs@vt.edu, 319 Robeson Hall, 231-8740). The Module Adminstrator will sign you up for the appropriate Module(s) in Scholar, and send you an email message to inform that you can access the Module(s) in Scholar.

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The procedure for completing a Self-Learning Module is fairly simple. Follow the steps given below.

1. Obtain a textbook for use in your self study. If you already have a calculus-based introductory physics textbook, you can use it. Or, borrow one from a friend. If you do not have a book, or cannot borrow one from a friend, see the Module Administrator to borrow a text. The choice of text is not magical --- different editions of a text are very similar, and even texts by different authors are very similar.


2. Take a look at the Formula Sheet(s) relevant to your Module(s). The formula sheet is exactly the one that will be given to you at the proctored exam you will take when you are ready to complete the self-study Module. So it is worth your while to keep that Formula Sheet on hand when studying and doing the End of Chapter Problems. The notation on the formula sheet may be different than the notation in your textbook, so keep that in mind. Again, the Formula Sheet you will be given at the actual exam will look exactly like this one. You will be given a fresh, new copy of this Formula Sheet at the actual exam, so any notations on your copy will not be available --- might as well not make any notations on your copy, so you get used to using it without them.


3. Study the appropriate chapters in the textbook that are relevant to your module topic. It is pretty easy to figure out what chapters you should study: see the textbooks webpage for an example of the chapter names relevant to each module topic; chapter names are very similar in all introductory physics textbooks.


4. This is meant to be a self-study system. However, you may contact the Module Administrator if you have questions about the procedure. If you have questions on the material, or trouble understanding the material, you may seek out assistance at the Physics Department's Common Office Hours where teaching assistants help students in PHYS 2305 and 2306. If you have further questions on the material you may want to find a tutor.


5. Work a subset of the problems at the back of each chapter, writing out your solutions on paper. You will be submitting your solutions in Scholar. You choose the problems. The best problems to choose are those that have answers in the back of the book, so you can check your understanding. It is best to work about 10-15 problems for each chapter, covering a wide range of material. Your choice of problems is not magical (just like your choice of textbook). Just try to sample the covered material with enough problems so you can be confident you understand the material. You might want to solve additional problems as well. Some texts split the problems at the end of a chapter into "Exercises" (meant to be more straight-forward), and "Problems" (meant to require more work). Some texts even add more a third category of more difficult problems, perhaps called "Challenge Problems." You can do a mix of "Exercises" and "Problems" but don't do only "Exercise"-type questions.


6. Scan your problem solutions. Go to the Assignments tool in Scholar (the Assignments tool is on the left side of the Scholar webpage), and submit your scanned solutions through the End of Chapter Problems Assignment. All your solutions should be submitted in one attachement file. DO NOT submit a separate solution file for each chapter. The Module Administrator will look over your solutions. The Administrator will not check your answers, or grade your solutions. The Administrator is just checking to see that you have worked 10-15 problems, in detail, for each chapter. You should already have the answers from the back of the book.


7. Once your problem solutions have been received and looked over, the Module Administrator will enable your access to the Practice Exam under the "Tests & Quizzes" tool in Scholar. Please allow a day or two for this to occur. Then, using only the Formula Sheet (a clean copy with no handwritten notes!) and a calculator, work on the Practice Exam. There are typically more problems on the Practice Exam than would be on the actual exam. There are only 10 questions on the actual 2-hour exam. So limiting youself to 2 hours for the Practice Exam might be unrealistic. Use more time than 2 hours, if you need it, or use more than one day. Once you have completed the Practice Exam, you will be able to access the answer key and detailed solutions. If you have not done well on the Practice Exam you should do more studying. There is no second Practice Exam, so it will be up to you as to whether you are ready to take the actual exam, and when you will be ready. If you have done well on the Practice Exam you are probably ready to take the actual exam. There is only one Practice Exam, so use it wisely!


8. To take the actual module exam, you must go to 319 Robeson Hall on one of the exam dates at one of the scheduled exam times. Starting in Fall 2012, module exams will be given on *only* three days each semester:
   1) The Friday before the first week of classes.
   2) The 6th Friday of the semester.
   3) The Friday of the last full week of classes.
   You may take one, two, or all three module exams (if necessary) on any of those days. Exam time slots on each day are:
   1) 10am-noon,
   2) 1pm-3pm,
   3) 4pm-6pm.
   Simply come to 319 Robeson Hall on any one of those days, at a scheduled time, and you can take a module exam. At the actual exam you will be given the same Formula Sheet you have already seen, allowed to use a calculator, and allowed to take up to 2 hours to complete the exam. The exam will consist of 10 multiple choice problems. You must obtain a score of at least 60% to pass the exam. You will be notified of your result, as will your college administrator.

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Frequently Asked Questions