Specializations

A graduate student's work normally will be concentrated in one of eight curricular groups: Applied Ocean Science, Biological Oceanography, Climate Sciences, Geosciences, Geophysics, Marine Biology, Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry, and Physical Oceanography. The interdisciplinary nature of research in marine and earth sciences is emphasized. Students are encouraged to take courses from various UC San Diego departments, and to pursue interdisciplinary research projects.

• Applied Ocean Science
• Applied Ocean Science is an interdepartmental program concerned with man's exploration of the sea
• Biological Oceanography
• Biological Oceanography is concerned with the interactions of populations of marine organisms with one another and with their physical and chemical environment.
• Climate Science
• Climate Sciences concerns the study of Earth's climate system with emphasis on the physical, dynamical, and chemical interactions of the atmosphere, ocean, land, ice, and the terrestrial and marine biospheres
• Geosciences
• Geosciences applies the observational, experimental, and theoretical methods of the basic sciences to understanding the processes that alter Earth's crust, and to determining the long-term history of the lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere.
• Geophysics
Geophysics applies the principles of mathematics and experimental and theoretical physics to understanding the nature of Earth's interior processes
• Marine Biology
Marine Biology is the observational and experimental study of all aspects of the physiology, genetics, behavior, ecology and evolution of marine organisms
• Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry
• Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry concerns chemical and geochemical processes operating in a broad range of study areas: the oceans, the solid earth, the atmosphere, marine organisms, polar ice sheets, lakes, meteorites, and the solar system.
• Physical Oceanography
• Physical Oceanography deals with observations of the properties and movement of ocean water and the understanding and modeling of these natural phenomena using fundamental concepts of fluid mechanics, applied physics, and mathematics.