M.S. and Ph.D. Oceanography

The M.S. and Ph.D. in Oceangraphy is a new program. The website is currently under construction. Please check back or contact Tom Lippman, Oceanography Graduate Program Director for more information.

Below is taken from the 2012-2013 Graduate Catalog:

Professor: Larry A. Mayer
Research Professor: Jim Gardner, James Irish
Affiliate Professor: Christopher E. Parrish
Associate Professor: Joel E. Johnson, Jonathan R. Pennock, James M. Pringle
Research Associate Professor: Thomas C. Lippmann, Joseph Salisbury, Douglas C. Vandemark, Ruth K. Varner, Larry G. Ward
Affiliate Associate Professor: Gregory P. Chini, Diane L. Foster
Assistant Professor: Margaret S. Boettcher, Rosemarie E. Came, Linda Kalnejais
Research Assistant Professor: Shackak Pe'eri

Degrees Offered: M.S., Ph.D.
The Department of Earth Sciences (ESCI) in the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences (CEPS) offers M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Oceanography that will include the study of biological oceanography, chemical oceanography, marine geology & geophysics, and physical oceanography. The OCE program also supports focused research in coastal and estuarine processes.

Admission Requirements
Applicants should have completed an undergraduate major related to one of the oceanography disciplines, including biology, chemistry, engineering, geology, physics, or mathematics, or an appropriate array of science and engineering courses within their major field. Applicants are expected to have completed one year each of calculus and chemistry and two semesters of physics and/or biology. It is not necessary to have had previous coursework in oceanography. Applicants must submit scores (within the last 5 years) from the general test of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE).

M.S. Degree Requirements
Students must complete a minimum of 30 credits for the thesis option or 34 credits for the non-thesis option. This includes four core courses in biological (ESCI 850), chemical (ESCI 852), geological (ESCI 859), and physical oceanography (ESCI 858), as well as seminar (ESCI 997) and proposal development (ESCI 998). Students in the thesis option will complete a thesis of 6 credits (in addition to the course credits) that is acceptable to the thesis-examining committee, and must pass a thesis defense. Students in the non-thesis option will complete 32 course credits and a 2-credit Directed Research project (ESCI 898 or OCE 898).

Ph.D. Requirements
Students plan a program of study in conjunction with a faculty guidance committee (FGC). Students entering the program without a master's degree are expected to complete a minimum of 36 credit hours. Students with an M.S. degree in oceanography or related field in physical science from UNH or another university should first demonstrate (through accredited transcript or the qualifying examination) acceptable mastery in the basic core areas. Those deficient in any discipline will be required to complete the respective course.

All students must complete at least one course from each of the following categories: Natural Sciences, Methods, Ethics/Policy/Law, and Seminar. Please see below for a list of courses that meet these specifications. Additional credit hours are determined by the FGC (typically 15 credit hours). Foreign language requirement is determined by the FGC. Students must complete a Coursework Approval Form, which summarizes all courses to be taken, and obtain signatures from their adviser, committee members, and the OCE program coordinator once the coursework is completed.

Students wishing to be admitted to doctoral candidacy will undergo a qualifying examination by the guidance committee designed to test the student’s in-depth knowledge in their major field and their ability to conduct independent and original research in oceanography. Qualifying students will present to the guidance committee a research proposal in which the soundness, originality, and feasibility of the investigation are clearly stated, and when approved based on a proposal examination by the committee, will form the basis for the doctoral dissertation.

Students are advanced to candidacy after successfully completing the comprehensive exam, proposal exam, and all coursework required by the guidance committee. Students must complete a dissertation, present their results at a public seminar, and pass an oral examination by the thesis committee.

Although not a strict requirement, all graduate students are encouraged to obtain teaching experience, preferably as a teaching assistant.

All students are required to spend time in the field, even if their research project and interests are primarily based on analytical research, modeling studies, or laboratory experiments. The field requirement could include extended time at sea onboard one of the UNH, UNOLS, NOAA, or similar oceanographic research vessels, or include field experiments at locations in New Hampshire, the U.S., or about the globe, and includes possible nearshore studies, Antarctic expeditions, or other land-based studies related to oceanography. Successful completion of the Field Requirement will be determined by the guidance committee.

Research and Facilities
The oceanography graduate program within the Department of Earth Sciences is enhanced by the Ocean Engineering and Zoology graduate programs within CEPS and COLSA, and by other departments and institutes at UNH including the civil and mechanical engineering and zoology departments, the Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space (EOS), the Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping (CCOM), and the Ocean Processes Laboratory (OPAL). Other related programs include the N. H. Sea Grant Program, the Cooperative Institute for Coastal and Estuarine Environmental Technology (CICEET), and the Center of Excellence in Coastal Ocean Observation and Analysis (COOA). Oceanographic laboratories at UNH include the Shoals Marine Laboratory (SML) on Appledore Island, the Coastal Marine Laboratory (CML) in Newcastle, the Jackson Estuarine Laboratory (JEL) at Adams Pt. on the Great Bay, and the Chase Ocean Engineering Laboratory (COEL) on the main UNH campus. Additional laboratories for the oceanography faculty are located on campus in James, Morse, Rudman and Spaulding Halls. The UNH Marine Program operates a marine support facility and two UNH research vessels moored in Portsmouth Harbor at the UNH pier, the R/V Gulf Challenger and the R/V Coastal Surveyor, as well as a number of small boats. The Marine Program also supports the UNH Diving Program, and overseas a shared-use Instrumentation Pool for student and faculty use.

Natural Sciences

ESCI 850	Biological Oceanography	4 cr.
ESCI 852	Chemical Oceanography	3 cr.
ESCI 858	Intro to Physical Oceanography	3 cr.
ESCI 859	Geological Oceanography	4 cr.

Methods

CHEM 862	Intro. to Ocean Remote Sensing	3 cr.
EOS 895	Model & Anal. Biogeochem cycles	4 cr.
ESCI 864	Data Anal. in Earth Sys. Science	4 cr.
ESCI 870	Fundamentals of Ocean Mapping	4 cr.
ESCI 871	Geodesy & Positioning Ocean Map.	4 cr.
ESCI 972	Hydrographic Field Course	4 cr.
ESCI 896	Time Series Analysis	4 cr.
IAM 940	Asymptotic & Perturbation Meth.	3 cr.
ME 807	Analytical Fluid Dynamics	3 cr.
MTH 835	Statistical Methods for Research	3 cr.
MTH 839	Applied Regression Analysis	3 cr.
MTH 845	Foundations of Applied Math	3 cr.
MTH 853	Intro. to Numerical Methods	3 cr.
OE 810	Ocean Measurements Lab	4 cr.

Ethics, Policy, and Law

ECON 908	Environ. Econ: Theory & Policy	3 cr.
NR 801	Ecological Sustainability & Values	4 cr.
NR 818	Law Natural Resources & Environ.	3 cr.
NR 820	Intern. Environ. Politic & Policies	4 cr.
NR 824	Resolving Environmental Conflicts	4 cr.
NR 902	Ecological Ethics and Values	4 cr.
NR 915	Coastal Challenges Science Policy	2 cr.
NR 916	Link Decision & Coastal Ecosys. Sci	4 cr
GRAD 930	Ethics in Research and Scholarship	Var cr.
POLT 880	Intern. Environ. Politics	3 cr.

Seminar and Proposal Development

OE 990	Ocean Seminars I	1 cr.
OE 991	Ocean Seminars II	1 cr.
ESCI 997	Seminar	1 cr.
ESCI 998	Proposal Development	1 cr.

Other Relevant Graduate Courses

CIE 847	Intro. to Mar. Pollution & Control	3 cr.
EOS 824	Intro. to Ocean Remote Sensing	3 cr.
EOS 831	Sys. Approach to Bio. Ocean Sci.	3 cr.
EOS 896	Bio-Optics & Primary Production	4 cr.
EOS 896	Dyn. of Global Marine Ecosystems	3 cr.
EOS 844	Biogeochemistry	4 cr.
EOS 895	Climate & Fisheries	4 cr.
ESCI 834	Geophysics	3 cr.
ESCI 841	Geochemistry	4 cr.
ESCI 845	Isotope Geochemistry	4 cr.
ESCI 847	Aqueous Geochemistry	4 cr.
ESCI 854	Sedimentology	4 cr.
ESCI 856	Geotectonics	3 cr.
ESCI 865	Paleoclimatology	3 cr.
ESCI 895	Paleoceanography	3 cr.
ESCI 896	Nearshore Processes	4 cr.
ESCI 952	Adv. Chemical Oceanography	4 cr.
ESCI 994	Advanced Ocean Seminar	1 cr.
ESCI 995	Geophysical Fluid Dynamics	3 cr.
ME 807	Analytical Fluid Dynamics	4 cr.
ME 812	Waves in Fluid	3 cr.
ME 909	Viscous Flow	3 cr.
ME 995	Turbulence	3 cr.
MICR 807	Marine Microbiology	5 cr.
MICR 817	Microbial Physiology	5 cr.
OE 844	Environment Acoustics I	4 cr.
OE 853	Ocean Hydrodynamics	3 cr.
OE 854	Ocean Waves & Tides I	4 cr.
OE 885	Environment Acoustics II	4 cr.
OE 895	Underwater Acoustics	4 cr.
OE 954	Ocean Waves & Tides II	4 cr.
OE 995	Coastal Sediment Transport	3 cr.
ZOOL 810	Ichthyology	4 cr.
ZOOL 811	Zooplankton Ecology	4 cr.
ZOOL 825	Marine Ecology	4 cr.
ZOOL 872	Fisheries Biology	3 cr.

For additional information, please contact:

Tom Lippmann
Oceanography Graduate Program Coordinator
Department of Earth Sciences and
The Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping 24 Colovos Road, Chase Hall
University of New Hampshire
Durham, NH 03824

(603) 862-4450
(603) 862-0839 (fax)
email address: lippmann@ccom.unh.edu

Faculty with Oceanography Interests

E-mail

Andrew Armstrong hydrography and ocean mapping E-mail	Margaret S. Boettcher geophysics, seismology E-mail	Rosemarie Came paleoclimatology, paleoceanography E-mail	Joel E. Johnson marine geology, sedimentology E-mail	Linda Kalnejais marine chemistry E-mail
Tom Lippmann oceanography, hydrography E-mail	Larry A. Mayer marine geology, ocean mapping E-mail	James M. Pringle physical oceanography E-mail	Joseph E. Salisbury biogeochemistry, ecology of coastal regions, E-mail	Doug Vandemark air-sea interaction and ocean remote sensing
Larry G. Ward sedimentology, coastal processes E-mail