The undergraduate cycle of study in the Department of Physics of NKUA leads to a BSc in Physics, following the successful completion of a four-year curriculum that consists of 38 courses and 240 ECTS credit points.

Each year of study is divided into two semesters, each of which lasts 13 weeks. The average daily attendance by students ranges between 4 and 5 hours, corresponding to an average of 21-22 hours per week.

In the beginning of the fourth year, students select a thematic area for specialization. The Department offers five such specialization areas, which correspond to the five Departmental Sections: Astrophysics, Electronics, Computers, Telecommunications and Control, Environmental Physics, Nuclear and Particle Physics, and Condensed Matter Physics.

The choice of specialization is possible only after a student has successfully completed a minimum of 15 courses and the 4 basic physics laboratories.

The curriculum includes:

• 31 theory courses

• 5 laboratory courses and

• A final year dissertation (two semesters) or, alternatively, two (additional) introductory specialization courses.
Courses are characterized as Core or Specialization courses, and as Compulsory or Elective.

The 31 theory courses are divided into:

• 18 Compulsory Core Courses

• 3 Elective Core Courses (selected from a total of 5 offered)

• 3 Introductory Courses to Specializations (selected from a total of 5 offered)

• 4 Specialization Courses (consisting of 2 compulsory and 2 elective selected from about 4-5 offered in each specialization area)

• 3 Free Elective Courses.

The 5 laboratories comprise:

• 4 Laboratories on Basic Physics (Basic Physics Laboratory Ι, ΙΙ, III and ΙV)

• 1 Specialization Laboratory (in the specialization area selected).

The final degree requirement consists of either a dissertation (undergraduate thesis) or the successful completion of two more introductory specialization courses. Students who select the former take on a thesis topic in their final year of study, in their specialization area. The work leading to the thesis lasts two semesters and is carried out in consultation with and under the supervision of an advising professor in the corresponding Departmental Section. A thesis can also be compiled under the supervision of any faculty member of the Department of Physics outside the Section corresponding to the student's specialization area, after approval by the student's specialization Section. It is also possible to carry out the work leading to the thesis outside the Department of Physics (in another Department of NKUA or in a research center in Greece), following the approval of the relevant Section and the appointment of a supervisor within the Section, who will responsible for submitting the grade for the thesis. Students who decide not to carry out thesis work, must instead complete successfully two more introductory specialization courses in addition to the three required of all students, i.e., they must take all five introductory courses offered by the Department.

The above courses correspond to a total of 240 ECTS credit points that are required for the award of the bachelor's degree by the Department of Physics. The final degree grade is calculated as the weighted average of the grades obtained in the courses that constitute the requirement of 240 ECTS points. The weighting factors are the ECTS points awarded by each course.

Students are also offered the opportunity to engage in research before or in addition to their final year thesis through research projects, which they undertake under the supervision of a faculty member of the Department, who may be from any Section of the Department. The research project has a separate course code and awards 3 ECTS credits, which are not included in the minimum number of ECTS credits required for the award of the bachelor's degree. Students can take a research project more than once (i.e. for more than one semester - up to four times in total - each with a different course code) if they continue their work in a first project or if they take on a new project, either with the same or another faculty member. Successfully completed research projects are listed in the Diploma Supplement, which is part of the full undergraduate transcript.

In the first and second semesters, students also attend introductory seminars, in which the Department's five thematic areas and the corresponding directions of study are presented. These seminars are not graded.

During their studies and in parallel with their coursework, students can engage in a Practical Training exercise at one of the public or private host institutions designated by the Physics Department, for a first exposure to real-life working conditions. Students participating in this program are compensated by the Greek National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF). More information and relevant announcements can be obtained at the Department’s website, as well as on the corresponding e-class entry, https://eclass.uoa.gr/courses/PHYS291, where students can also register for the Practical Training. The Practical Training appears on the curriculum as a free elective course of the sixth (ΣΤ‘) semester (course code “ΠΡΑΣΚ”), lasts two (2) months and grants five (5) ECTS credit units. The course and its ECTS units, however, are not included in the minimum number of ECTS credits required for the award of the bachelor's degree, though they are listed in the Diploma Supplement.