PHYS 242Electricity and Magnetism 1
- Units
- 0.50
- Faculty
- Science
- Subject
- Physics
When it runs
- F24
- W25
- S25
- F25
- W26
- S26
- F26
- W27
- S27
Ran in 6 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: scheduled, 2 lecture sections. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.
Review of vector calculus. Electrostatic field in vacuum, Coulomb's law and the superposition principle, Maxwell's equations for the electrostatic field, electrostatic potential, magnetostatic field in vacuum, Maxwell's equations for the magnetostatic field, Biot-Savart law, vector potential, inductance.
Prerequisites
- Complete all of the following
- Must have completed the following:
- PHYS122 - Electricity and Magnetism (0.50)
- Must have completed at least 1 of the following:
- Complete 1 of the following
- Must have completed the following:
Antirequisites
None listed.
Leads to
Fall 2026 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | 8103 | 55 / 60 | Online or by arrangement |
Winter 2027 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | 6802 | 0 / 120 | MW 08:30–09:50 |
| LEC 701 | 2548 | 36 / 9999 | Online or by arrangement |
Reviewed on UW Flow
67% liked it25% easy82% useful
From 83 ratings and 26 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.
ribbit.
Aug 2023 · liked it · 3 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
He takes pictures of the lecture boards but he never posts them
Jul 2026 · didn’t like it · 1 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
This course is basically PHYS 122 with integrals. Love Fil though
Apr 2026 · liked it · 1 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
2nd time having Fil Simovic as the professor. i must say no more plug and chug. but still, exam questions are decent compared to griffiths textbook
Apr 2026 · liked it · 1 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
Taken in W26 with Fil Simovic. He is the GOAT of all time. Really does a good job of explaining each and every concept. Not much harder than 122 if you understood electromagnetism.
Apr 2026 · liked it · 1 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
Discussed on r/uwaterloo
70 posts and comments in 58 threads mention PHYS 242, August 2012 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.
Spring 2024
Rule change? 11 points, 7 comments
“Hey, this is a stupid question but I noticed that I don't have to wait until August 18 to get my final exam grades back. My friend also got his grades back right away. …”
u/Impressive-Damage108: “wat class is this?”
u/Mundane-Crow-3572: “I got my final exam grades back for phys 234 and phys 242 on learn, not quest though. My friend is in some 400 level geography course and he got his back too. I've never gotten my final exam grades back before the date the university sets to release grades. …”
Fun PHYS & AMATH Courses 5 points, 1 comment
u/eranand04: “seems like u have AMATH 250, MATH 237, PHYS 121. If u like lin alg: PHYS 234, 334 ,434, AMATH 373, 473, 474. If u like DE: PHYS 363, AMATH 361. If u like vector calc: PHYS 242, 342, 442”
Winter 2024
Students getting dumber? 159 points, 72 comments
“Almost every course I've taken had record low grades. The profs I've talked to said they're giving similar exams, so they're not sure why grades are getting lower and lower. …”
u/NotoriousHakk0r4chan: “Even back in my day pre-covid this was happening I think, I remember my phys 242 prof gave us the same midterm and exam as a class 4 years prior to us and the grades were a solid 15% lower on average. …”
Fall 2023
First year physics 1 point, 7 comments
“Why is it just grade 11 repeat? If we got into gr 12 physics, then waterloo, we obviously know gr 11 physics. They’re reteaching kinematics and impulse?? Why??? …”
u/kalashnikovgobrrrr: “Canadian high schools don't teach concepts like complex numbers, etc as well. That's why a lot of the math/physics is gonna be review. …”
u/kalashnikovgobrrrr: “… for electric fields was touched upon in PHYS122 which you take next semester, and in PHYS242 we definitely covered some more of them. …”
Winter 2023
Biggest curve you've been gifted with 67 points, 36 comments
“Seeing some of the reactions to marks being released has me thinking. What was the biggest curve you ever received? Exam or course wise. Let's give some hope to others. …”
u/OneHundredCanucks: “PHYS 242 Midterm went from a 60 to 130 😭”
Spring 2022
Mathematical physics Course blueprint recommendations 3 points, 21 comments
“Hey everyone, I’m going into the mathematical physics program at Waterloo next year and I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations on a sort of blueprint I could follow for courses because …”
u/Yu-Li: “… AMATH 271 PMATH 351 PHYS 358 3A Winter AMATH 353 AMATH 373 PMATH 352 PMATH 365 / PMATH 343 PHYS 242 First coop term Do your first research coop PHYS 342 3B Fall AMATH 473 AMATH 351 PMATH 347 PHYS 442 (get override request) PHYS 475 (get override request) / PHYS 468 Change coop …”
Winter 2021
Physics/Astrophysics at UW 9 points, 8 comments
u/MathematicalTrash: “I am a mathematical phys student and take only small amount of physics courses compared to the phys student. …”
u/MathematicalTrash: “Actually I haven't taken lots of phys courses. But I think courses like phys 234, 334 and phys 242,342. Though the latter course teaches more things, but the first half of 342, 334 are the same for what we've learnt in 234 and 242.”
Phys 242 2 points, 1 comment
Phys 242 0 points, 0 comments
Fall 2020
Physics Lecture Videos - Richard Epp 25 points, 14 comments
“Hi all, I graduated from Waterloo two years ago roughly. I had done a degree in mathematical physics. By far the best physics teacher at that university is Richard Epp in my opinion. …”
u/ffrosteh: “I have Epp right now in PHYS 121 and I can confirm his lecture videos are great. He has a pretty high quality setup where he records behind a transparent wall and uses some kind of chalk markers. …”
u/Island_Man89: “I hope they are! Matteo is amazing too, I had him for EM1(phys242) the first year he taught it and EM2(342). Just remember filiform flux tube.”
How is ray leflamme as a teacher? 3 points, 2 comments
u/Paul_A_M_Dirac1: “I don't believe he has ever taught phys242. I have heard good things about him when he taught the quantum computing courses.”
Have you ever got 100 in a course? 10 points, 27 comments
“Is it possible to get 100% in a math, cs, or eng course? How rare is it?”
u/Jb_schri: “100 in PHYS 242 when classes were still in person 😎”
Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026
- Undergraduate Calendar, 2026–27The official entry
- Requirements for Fall 2026Waterloo’s requisite checker
- Schedule of Classes, Fall 2026Instructors, rooms, live seats
- Quest Class SearchWhere you enrol
- Course outlinesSyllabi from past terms (UW login)
- UW FlowStudent ratings and reviews
- WClassesPast sections back to 2004, and who taught them