The Ohio State Department of Astronomy offers a superb Ph.D. program for students interested in observational and theoretical astrophysics. We place a strong emphasis on research. Students begin working on research projects as soon as they arrive and we encourage them to work with several different research advisors during the course of their graduate education. Our graduating students typically author or co-author 8-15 refereed journal articles by the time they complete their PhDs. This is in addition to writing numerous conference papers and abstracts. Our 1st- and 2nd-year students are active researchers: publishing papers, attending conferences, giving talks, going on observing runs, and working in the instrument lab. This early initiation into the astronomical research community pays off when students graduate and embark upon their careers. There are also a plethora of opportunities for building an outreach and teaching portfolio, including developing and giving shows at the Arne Slettebak Planetarium.
Our recent Ph.D. recipients have gone on to postdoctoral positions at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, the Carnegie Observatories, the Institute for Advanced Study, UC Santa Cruz, the Kavli Institute at the University of Chicago, Space Telescope Science Institute, UCLA, Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics, University of Leiden, Brera Observatory in Italy, Observatoire de Paris, SUNY Stony Brook, Princeton, and Pierce College. A number of our recent graduates have been awarded many of the most prestigious postdoctoral fellowships in Astronomy, including several Hubble and Carnegie Fellowships, one of the first Sagan Fellowships, and the Princeton-Catolica, Menzel, and Clay Fellowships.
Bridge Program
More information on the Ohio State Physics Bridge Program.
About the Astronomy Department and Culture
On many research topics, a student has a choice between several possible research advisors. Students are encouraged to work in more than one research area before (and after!) settling on a dissertation topic. Our students typically publish one or two papers, many are first-author, before completing their second year.
Students also have the opportunity to work on advanced astronomical instrumentation through the department's instrumentation lab. The Imaging Science Lab is a group of nine research staff with expertise in optics, detectors, electronics, mechanical design, and software engineering. This group works closely with the observationally-minded faculty and builds optical and infrared instruments for a variety of telescopes.
The Department of Astronomy is a close-knit community with a lively atmosphere and a great deal of daily contact between students, faculty, and staff. Astronomy faculty contact comes naturally through research supervision, classes, group meetings, and colloquia in the first two years. Continual contact comes through the one and only Astro Coffee, weekly journal clubs and colloquia, student-organized reading groups, and many informal events. Students at Ohio State have more opportunities to learn from close interaction with faculty than they would in virtually any other astronomy program. The department actively fosters an inclusive environment where everyone is welcome and respected and commits to following our Code of Conduct.
Observational research interests of the Ohio State faculty include
- Extrasolar Planets
- Galactic and Extragalactic Star Formation
- Stellar Populations
- Chemical Evolution
- Supernovae and Compact Objects
- The Interstellar Medium
- The Galactic Center
- Galactic Structure
- Gravitational Microlensing
- Structure and Evolution of Galaxies
- Active Galactic Nuclei and Quasars
- Astronomical Instrumentation
Theoretical research interests include
- Primordial and stellar nucleosynthesis
- Stellar structure and evolution
- Supernovae, gamma-ray bursts, and compact objects
- Galactic structure
- Dark matter
- Galaxy dynamics
- Active galactic nuclei
- Galaxy formation
- The intergalactic medium
- Large scale structure
- Cosmology
- Astroparticle Physics
- Atomic physics
Observing and Computational Facilities
- LBT Observatory on Mt. Graham, Arizona (16% share of twin 8.4m telescope)
- MDM Observatory on Kitt Peak, Arizona (25% share of 2.4m and 1.3m telescope)
- The All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae (ASAS-SN)
- Founding member of the SMARTS consortium that operates the 1.3m, 1.0m, 1.5m, and 0.9m telescopes at CTIO in Chile
- Member of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Collaboration
- Member of the Dark Energy Survey (DES) Collaboration
- Member of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) Collaboration
- Two 100+ node Beowulf Clusters
- Condor network linking the 100+ Linux workstations in the Department
- Users of the Ohio Supercomputer Center
Visiting the Department
Pre-Admissions
Prior to applying to our graduate program, prospective students are welcome to visit and join Astro Coffee and/or colloquium and tour The Ohio State University campus. We do not offer any official departmental tours until after admissions decisions are made.
Post-Admissions
Students receiving an offer of admission to our graduate program will be invited to visit our department at some point during the spring. These visits usually involve an online and in-person component allowing you the chance to meet the faculty and students you will be joining while embarking on your graduate career.