Program Overview

Introduction to the Joint Program with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

The Joint Program with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) offers several joint degrees, including doctoral degrees in oceanography and doctoral, professional, and master's degrees in oceanographic engineering. The degree is awarded by the student’s home department at MIT, jointly with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, acknowledging fulfillment of the Joint Program requirements in the selected program discipline.

Overview of the Joint Program

• The graduate programs administered by joint MIT-WHOI committees draw from the faculty and staff of both institutions.
• Students accepted to the Joint Program have access to the extensive intellectual and physical resources available for advanced study at both Woods Hole and MIT.
• Upon admission, students register in the appropriate MIT department and at WHOI simultaneously, and are assigned academic advisors at each institution.

Funding

• Funding, offered as research assistantships or fellowships to all entering graduate students, is sufficient to cover tuition and fees and provide a salary or stipend.

Applied Ocean Science and Engineering

• Applied ocean science and engineering involves the application of physics and the engineering sciences to the study of oceanic processes and the design of instruments, systems, and structures required to observe, measure, and work in the ocean.
• The Departments of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and Mechanical Engineering offer joint programs with WHOI in oceanographic engineering.
• The programs lead to the Master of Science, Engineer, Doctor of Science, or Doctor of Philosophy degree.

Biological Oceanography

• The Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Science and Engineering is a five-year program that offers a unique opportunity for training and research in areas that combine observational, experimental, and theoretical approaches to the study of biological systems.
• Biological oceanography seeks to describe and understand the biological processes that are active in the marine and bordering environments.
• The research of biological oceanographers is diverse and includes ecology, toxicology, biochemistry, animal behavior and physiology, and molecular biology.
• The Departments of Biology; Civil and Environmental Engineering; and Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences offer programs with WHOI in biological oceanography.
• Students applying to the Joint Program must choose biological oceanography as their discipline and additionally choose one of the three associated MIT departments.

Chemical Oceanography

• Chemical oceanographers study the chemical composition of the marine environment and the processes that have produced the present composition of sea water and sediments.
• Principal research areas include water column geochemistry, sedimentary geochemistry, seawater-basalt interactions, and atmospheric chemistry.
• The Departments of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences and Civil and Environmental Engineering offer programs with WHOI in chemical oceanography and marine geochemistry.
• These programs lead to the Doctor of Science or Doctor of Philosophy.

Marine Geology and Geophysics

• The goal of marine geology and geophysics is to understand the physical and chemical processes that determine the structure and evolution of the ocean basins and their margins.
• Research is being conducted in a wide range of specialties including micropaleontology, paleoceanography, petrology and volcanic processes, seismology, gravity, magnetics, heat flow, sediment dynamics, and isotope geology.
• The Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences offers programs with WHOI in marine geology and geophysics that lead to the Doctor of Science or Doctor of Philosophy.

Physical Oceanography

• MIT and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI) offer a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) or Doctor of Science (ScD) in physical oceanography; these degrees are awarded interchangeably.
• The Joint Program in Physical Oceanography prepares students to carry out independent and creative research in the field of physical oceanography, which includes the exploration and study of the physics and geography of ocean currents and water properties.
• The goal of the Joint Program is to lay the foundation for scholarship and research and to allow the student to follow their individual interests.
• Students typically complete the doctoral degree in five years.
• Students are eligible for fellowships, scholarships, and research assistantships for the first five years; extension of research beyond the fifth year requires a petition by the student and principal advisor.

Program Requirements

• Each student entering the program is assigned two advisors, one from MIT and one from WHOI.
• One of these is the principal advisor, with whom the student begins their research work; the secondary advisor offers advice from the perspective of the other institution and is not required to advise in a scientific capacity.
• The initial assignment of advisors is made by the Joint Program before the student arrives for their first term and is based on the student’s indicated scientific interests.
• In consultation with their advisors, the student must form a four-to-five-person thesis committee at least two months prior to their thesis proposal defense.
• The principal advisor serves as chair of this committee, which must feature at least one member from MIT and one member from WHOI.
• The committee must also include one member from the Joint Committee on Physical Oceanography (JCPO), unless the student petitions JCPO and is granted a waiver.
• Students are expected to meet with their thesis committee at least twice a year.

General Exam and Coursework

• The general exam and associated foundational coursework should be completed by the end of the student’s second year in the program.
• Students are encouraged to consult with their advisors to determine courses that best suit their research and interests.
• Students are expected to take 9–12 courses, which typically include four area-specific core courses, one math course, and 4–7 electives.
• Students may choose elective courses from the offerings of any MIT or WHOI department, with cross-registration available at Harvard.
• Focus areas include but are not limited to general physical oceanography, physical oceanography and climate, physical-bio-chemical interactions, and coastal
  earshore physical oceanography and engineering.
• It is expected that the student focus on research during the summer and Independent Activities Period in January of each year.

Thesis and Defense

• A doctoral thesis is required, including formal defense chaired by a faculty member who is not on thesis committee.
• This person is selected by the student in consultation with their advisor and must be approved by the Joint Program.
• In addition, students are expected to give a public seminar covering their thesis research or a substantial section of their thesis research; this seminar takes place about four months before the formal defense at the institution (MIT or WHOI) that is not hosting the formal defense.

Degree Award

• After completing all requirements, students are awarded a Doctor of Philosophy or Doctor of Science in Physical Oceanography.