Our graduate program advances the ocean sciences by training future leaders of the field to conduct research and to educate generations to follow. We offer an undergraduate degree, preparing students for graduate study and careers with government agencies, consulting firms and research institutions. Many graduates use their degree in careers in the ocean sciences, but with our emphasis on interdisciplinary, quantitative approaches they move easily among the natural sciences and into a wide variety of other fields. The breadth of inquiry in the ocean sciences make it an ideal component of a liberal education and we offer elective courses appropriate for fulfilling the Natural World distribution requirement, for building expertise in the environmental and earth sciences, and for connecting scientific knowledge to societal concerns. Many of our classes have web pages.

The foundation of ocean sciences is observation and a unique component of our program is the opportunity for experiences at sea. The school funds 45 days per year of work aboard the R/V Thomas G. Thompson directed at various educational objectives: graduate, undergraduate and outreach.

Many faculty, staff and students participate in educational outreach, formal and informal. We are especially proud of the award-winning REVEL program, a strong contributor to the UW goal of partnership with K-12 education.

Our graduate students again host the regional Student Physical Oceanography Retreat--StuPOR--in mid January 2003 at Friday Harbor.