An Introduction and a Brief History from our Director
Thank you for being a member of the University of Washington School of Oceanography. We are glad you are part of our community and we hope you will have strong and creative collaborations within the School for many years.
The School of Oceanography was formed in 1930 and initially named the UW Oceanographic Labs. The labs became a department in 1951 and began offering Bachelor’s degrees at that time. We were the first university in the U.S., and likely the world, to offer an undergraduate B.S. in Oceanography. Our first degree recipient was Alyn Duxbury. Dux remains a committed member of our community and will be this year’s 2022 commencement speaker. Today we are a school, but that is merely a synonym for department.
The School of Oceanography is housed within the College of the Environment at UW, along with units such as Aquatic & Fishery Sciences, Marine Affairs, Earth & Space Sciences, Forest Resources, and Atmospheric Sciences. Together there are more than 300 teaching and tenure-line professors in the College, making us part of one of the largest and most productive units of its kind.
The University of Washington has been ranked #1 in the world in Oceanography for the past four years. Each year approximately $60M in research money passes directly through the School of Oceanography, making it the fourth largest research unit on campus (exclusive of the medical school). In collaboration with our partners in the Applied Physics Laboratory and the Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean and Ecosystem Studies (CICOES), the UW is funded for an additional $140M in annual research, making marine-related research one of the most important research engines on campus. The School of Oceanography is also one of only three schools in the country operating more than one UNOLS research vessel, and our global-class ship the R/V Thomas G Thompson has completed the greatest number of at-sea days in the fleet each year since 2019.
The mission of the School of Oceanography is to advance the science of the ocean, educate students in the field, work toward solutions to problems stemming from climate change, and to increase the public’s awareness of the ocean. The School has a focus on scientific discovery through observation, experimentation, theory, modeling, and technological innovation. We are a national leader in undergraduate oceanography, unique in incorporating “blue water” research cruises as a major component of our curriculum. We graduate master’s and doctoral students (90% of whom stay in the field) who will be future leaders of scientific discovery, teaching, and public service.
- Dr. Rick Keil 2022
