In addition to its undergraduate and graduate programs of study, the department offers several courses that undergraduate students in all majors may use to satisfy the General Education Program Natural Sciences requirement. Look for courses with prefixes ASTR and PHYS under "Natural Sciences" in the General Education Program section of the Catalog. The department also offers a First-Year Seminardesigned for entering undergraduates.

The department also participates in an interdisciplinary doctoral program, the Program in Applied Mathematical and Computational Sciences (Graduate College).

All of the department's courses and advanced laboratories are taught by faculty members. Faculty members also supervise associated laboratories taught by graduate students. Enrollment in courses beyond the elementary level is typically 15 to 20 students; there is ample opportunity for individual work. Special introductory courses are offered for students majoring in physics and astronomy and for others with a special interest in these subjects.