Masters Degree Program in Oceanography with Research Experience

Diana with Niskin Photo General Requirements

The master's degree program by thesis requires 33 semester hours of course work of which 6 hours must be thesis credits (OCE 5971r).

The required course work will be taken in the Department of Oceanography or in other scientific disciplines as the individual's interest and thesis project dictate. At least 18 of the total hours of course work must be taken on a letter grade basis (A, B, C ...). Of the remaining credits, a student may enroll for no more than 6 hours of course work on a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory basis during the Master's degree program in courses where letter grades are routinely given. This restriction does not apply to courses normally offered on the basis of the "S/U" grading system.

No more than 3 hours of Supervised Research (OCE 5910) and 3 hours of Supervised Teaching (OCE 5940) may be applied toward fulfilling the 33 hour degree requirement. The Board of Regents funds a maximum of three hours of Supervised Research and three hours of Supervised Teaching per graduate student for the M.S. degree program.

A graduate student registered for an individual study course must attend at least one conference a week on the campus.

The Department of Oceanography makes no mandatory department-wide requirement of a foreign language for the M.S. degree. In specific cases, however, a student's advisory committee may require demonstration of foreign language skills appropriate to the student's specialty.

Only courses numbered 5000 or above are normally to be taken by graduate students. A graduate student's committee or department may, however, permit the student to take specified 4000 level courses in the degree program. Such 4000 level courses may be credited toward a graduate degree.

The department requires that each student preparing for the M.S. degree attain a grade of A or B in the introductory survey 'core' courses (see course requirements). Course credit may be transferred from another department or institution as a substitute for an oceanography core course if approved by the FSU instructor of that particular course, and so requested by the student's advisor and according to the rules set by the university.

The university requires that all work for the master's degree must be completed within seven years from the time of the student's initial registration. Two to three years are normally needed to complete the course work and research for the Master's degree.

Any degree-seeking student with at least a B.S. or B.A. degree may apply to enter the Master's program. Admission into the program is granted upon a majority vote of the faculty.

Sponsorship

For a student to be admitted to the department, he or she must be sponsored by a faculty member who will be his or her major professor. The major professor will supervise the student's degree program and be the student's major source of intellectual and financial support. Prospective students are encouraged to contact individual faculty members to discuss the possibility of sponsorship.

Compensation

A student who receives an assistantship is guaranteed a stipend and tuition during the first year. For an out-of-state student, this compensation amounts to at least $21,084 and is adjusted regularly for inflation. After a student submits a prospectus for his or her Master's degree research, the stipend increases by 3.6%. In addition to Departmental Teaching and Research Assistantships, Florida State University offers various modes of financial assistance.

Thesis Committee

The department has an established procedure for following each student's academic progress. The student must choose a thesis supervisory committee by the end of the student's fourth academic semester in residence. The composition of the committee must be as follows:

  1. The committee must consist of at least three faculty members of which all must hold at least master directive status;
  2. One of these must be an oceanographer whose work lies outside the student's specialty area;
  3. Two of the members must be from the Oceanography Department;
  4. Two members must be well acquainted with the student's area of specialization;
  5. The Chair of the Department must approve all committees.

Before the end of the student's fourth academic semester in residence in the Department of Oceanography, the student's committee must submit to the Department Chair and to the student its assessment of the student's work and capabilities, and its recommendations about the future of the student in the department. The committee must decide whether the student should be allowed to continue in the program. A written committee report covering these points must be put in the student's departmental file by the major professor.

The student's committee, by means of annual conferences and examinations, must evaluate and report in writing the student's progress to the Department Chair. The reports will be made available to the student and the academic dean.

Course Policy

Core Courses

The Department of Oceanography requires students to complete at least one core course outside their own discipline. The core courses are:

At the discretion of the student's advisory committee OCE 5009 (Advanced General Oceanography) may be substituted for one core course.

Course Requirements

In addition, the following courses are required for students specializing in these respective areas; these requirements may in some cases be modified by agreement among the student, the major professor, and the student's committee according to the student's background and research interest.

Thesis Hours

The student must register for thesis credits each term in which a substantial amount of work is being done on the thesis. A student who has completed the required coursework and continues to use campus facilities and/or receive faculty supervision but who has not made a final thesis submission shall register for a minimum of two hours of thesis per term. The exact number of hours shall be determined by the major professor based on the proportion of faculty/staff time, facilities, and other resources needed to support the student.

Thesis Prospectus

Each student must, by the end of the fourth academic semester of residence, submit to the committee a thesis prospectus. For example, a student entering the program in the fall would do this before the end of the next fall semester. This prospectus should outline briefly the research proposed by the student; it will be the basis for the subsequent thesis. A written copy, dated and signed by all the members of the advisory committee, must be placed in the student's departmental file.

Thesis Defense

Registration shall be required in the final term in which a degree is granted and shall consist of a minimum of one semester hour of thesis credit, even if the student has completed the requirements for the degree in previous semesters. This is to reimburse the university for the administrative costs of manuscripts clearance and final degree clearance procedures.

Prior to defending a thesis, the student should register for OCE 8976 (Master's Thesis Defense) and sign up for graduation at the Registrar's Office. A student not defending during the anticipated semester will have to sign up for graduation again at the beginning of the following semester; but does not need to register for OCE 8976 again. A copy of the university guidelines for writing and typing the thesis may be obtained from the Manuscript and Final Clearance Advisor in the Graduate Office (408 Wescott).

The student must submit the thesis to the committee at least two weeks before the announced defense. Individual committee members, at their discretion, may demand up to four weeks to review the defense copy. This defense copy should be essentially complete and legibly typed. The student should meet with each committee member prior to the defense to discuss the defense copy. An additional copy, approved by the student's major professor for this purpose, must be placed in the office of the Academic Coordinator (333A OSB) at least two weeks before the defense; simultaneously, the student must prepare and post a flyer announcing the date, time, and place of the defense.

The defense seminar will be open to the public and is designed to give the student an opportunity to present student's research and to respond to criticism. The defense examination will be administered by the student's committee. After the thesis has been successfully defended, the student will prepare a final copy of the student's thesis acceptable to the student's committee. This corrected version will be signed by the student's committee and the Department Chair.

The student must submit three copies of the thesis (on 50% rag, 20 pound bond) to the Manuscript and Final Clearance Advisor and two copies (on Xerox paper) to the Department of Oceanography of which one will be sent to the Marine Lab Library. The copies that are submitted to the Clearance Advisor will be bound; one copy will be sent to the student's major professor and two copies will be placed in the University Library.

Guidelines for Bypassing the Masters Degree

It is also possible that a student in the Master's program may bypass the Master's degree upon completion of the following procedure. The student's M.S. committee should submit to the Admissions Committee:

  1. A strong letter of recommendation for by-passing the M.S. degree. This letter should come from the entire committee.
  2. The student's complete up-to-date departmental folder, including
    1. Undergraduate record
    2. Complete graduate record
    3. GRE scores, and both undergraduate and graduate GPA's
    4. All letters of recommendation for student's initial admission to FSU
    5. Written records of all meetings of the student's MS committee.

If the Admissions Committee approves admission directly to the Ph.D., the admission must be further approved by a majority vote of the whole academic faculty of the Oceanography Department. Following that approval, formal admission will be made through the Office of Graduate Admissions.