The Marine Sciences and Technology Ph.D. program, offered by School of Marine Sciences (SMS), includes four core courses taken by all students (12 credits), courses in a concentration area beyond the core, seminars, and dissertation research. Work in the concentration area usually includes a minimum of 24 credit hours of courses and helps the student prepare for the written and oral candidacy examinations. Ph.D. students are not normally accepted as part-time students. Courses may be taken at any SMS-affiliated program on the four campuses, in other departments, or at other area institutions, and may be included in a student’s program of studies as determined by the student’s major advisor and/or dissertation committee.
Core Course Requirements
Each SMS student must complete four core courses (12 credits), one in each of four core areas: biological oceanography, chemical oceanography, physical oceanography, and Marine Policy and/or Management areas (including law and economics). The Core column in the SMS course list identifies the core courses and their respective areas. The core courses are intended to provide a common grounding in the biological, chemical, and physical oceanographic areas of marine sciences and technology, and in related marine policy and management disciplines. At least two core courses are offered each semester using the University’s substantial distance learning facilities and technology. Students normally complete the core courses in the first two semesters.
SMS has developed core courses that are taught via distance learning, one in each of the core areas (biological, chemical and physical oceanography), which will satisfy the requirements of SMS students. These courses will ensure that all SMS students master key concepts and skills central to an interdisciplinary marine sciences and technology graduate program. The core courses may be team taught in some cases.
Concentrations and Electives
To build on the core courses, each SMS student selects an area of concentration and chooses a marine policy or management core course and electives appropriate to this concentration, as approved by their faculty advisor and/or thesis committee. Concentrations and Courses describes the concentrations and lists the electives associated with each concentration.
Students typically take most of their elective courses on the campus where they and their major faculty advisor are in residence. Some elective courses, however, will also be taught via distance learning. In addition, students may choose to be in residence at different campuses for a period of time during their course of study, in order to take certain courses or to take advantage of research opportunities.
*Price shown is for indicative purposes, please
January 2025
University of Massachusetts - Lowell
Lowell,
Massachusetts,
01854, United States
Applicant must show official evidence of having earned a baccalaureate degree or its U.S. equivalent from an accredited college or university.
English language proficiency:
Minimum 79 TOEFL score; 6.5 IELTS score
*There may be different IELTS requirements depending on your chosen course.
The university has an excellent graduate employment rate, with 98 percent of graduates employed, in grad school or volunteering within six months.