The Joint Program of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology offers advanced degrees in oceanography and applied ocean science and engineering. Graduate study encompasses virtually all of the basic sciences as they apply to the marine environment: physics, chemistry, geology, geophysics, and biology. Students who choose applied ocean science and engineering may concentrate in the major fields (civil, environmental, mechanical, and electrical), materials science, or oceanographic engineering. More than 160 scientists/faculty from the two institutions participate in the Joint Program.
Since all the faculty involved in the Joint Program are members of an academic department at MIT, their individual accomplishments and awards are reported through those departments. These include Courses I, II, VI, VII, XII and XIII.
A passive link option was installed in two of the classrooms in Building 54 with the addition of secured cameras and microphones. This added configuration enables individuals to schedule meetings over the microwave link between MIT and WHOI on occasions where a cameraman is not needed.
There is now a Web page for the Joint Program. It can be found through the MIT Home Page or at http://web.mit.edu/mit-whoi/www.
The Joint Program graduated 24 students in 1995-96; of these, 16 received the doctorate, five received the master's degree, and three received the engineer's degree. The breakdown by discipline is as follows: Chemical Oceanography (two); Biological Oceanography (four); Marine Geology and Geophysics (two); Physical Oceanography (five); and Applied Ocean Science and Engineering (eleven).
Enrollment in the Joint Program has remained stable for the last two years at a level of 146 students. The projected enrollment estimate for September 1996 is 150 students, with 17 in Chemical Oceanography, 34 in Marine Geology and Geophysics, 33 in Biological Oceanography, 30 in Applied Ocean Science and Engineering, and 36 in Physical Oceanography.
As we look towards replacing the microwave link with a fully digitized system at some point in the future, we are continuing our consultations with specialists in the field of long-distance learning.
We anticipate that there will be an external review of the Joint Program in the fall of 1996, as a follow-up to the Internal Review which was conducted in 1994.
Ronni Schwartz
MIT Reports to the President 1995-96