The Directed Reading Program in Physics  (DRP-PHY) is a program of the Physics Department at the University of Texas at Austin. It is similar to the DRP in the Mathematics Department.  DRP pairs undergraduate students with graduate student mentors to undertake independent projects in physics. Any undergraduate student may apply for DRP and, if accepted, will be assigned an appropriate graduate mentor. The student and the mentor will agree on a project. It can be based on reading through a book or an article, but the project is not limited to such things. The program guidelines can be found here.

Requirements: The DRP student is required to have an hour-long weekly meeting with his or her mentor to discuss progress towards the goal of the project. Approximately four hours of independent work by the student is expected between meetings. At the end of the semester, the group of DRP participants will meet, and each DRP student will give a 15 minute talk on the semester's work.

Qualifications: Any sophomore, junior, or senior with a strong background in physics is elegible to apply, including at least the completion of the PHY301-- PHY316.  sequence. Freshmen or others with unusual background will be considered on a case-by-case basis. There is a selection of projects with no prerequisite.

Applications: The applications are available each fall and spring semester in the first or second week of classes.