![Conservation hero — saltmarsh replanting at golden hour — Program imagery, policy/conservation cluster.](/sites/default/files/2026-01/Conservation_Saltmarsh_Restoration.png?alternateWidths=/sites/default/files/styles/canvas_parametrized_width--%7Bwidth%7D/public/2026-01/Conservation_Saltmarsh_Restoration.png.avif%3Fitok%3DIBmRofAr) Case Study # Ocean Engineering A research master's in autonomous marine systems and coastal engineering, built around the test basin and the vehicles that live in it. [ Start an application ](/standard-page/how-to-apply) [ Download the handbook ](/standard-page/admissions) The MS in Ocean Engineering is a research degree for engineers who want to work on machines and structures that operate where nobody can reach them. Two years, a thesis, and a great deal of time in the basin. ## What you study Underwater robotics and autonomous marine systems form the technical core, with data analysis alongside. The thesis dominates the second year and is expected to involve something that gets built and tested rather than only simulated. The group's particular interest is in autonomy that admits uncertainty. A vehicle cannot use satellite positioning below the surface, cannot be reached by radio, and cannot be recovered quickly. Every decision it makes, it makes alone, from sensors that drift and a map that may be wrong. A vehicle that recognizes it is lost and surfaces is a success. A confidently wrong one is how expensive equipment is lost. ## The test basin Thirty meters long, five deep at one end, with a wave maker and a movable false floor. Graduate work has priority outside teaching hours. The point of the facility is that failure happens on a Tuesday afternoon with everyone watching, rather than offshore where it costs a day of ship time and leaves no evidence. Sea trials aboard R/V *Cascadia Strait* follow basin work for projects that get that far. ## Where it leads Subsea and offshore engineering, autonomous vehicle manufacturers, defense and survey contractors, national laboratories, and doctoral study. Graduates are hired on the strength of having built something that worked, which is why the thesis expectation is what it is. ## What to expect Long hours, wet equipment, and a research group that treats a failed deployment as data. Coming in with programming beyond the minimum makes the first year substantially easier. ## Curriculum MENG 340 [Underwater Robotics](/course/underwater-robotics)Designing, building and testing an underwater vehicle. Weekly sessions in the test basin, and most teams break something. 1.5 MENG 530 [Autonomous Marine Systems](/course/autonomous-marine-systems)Graduate work on autonomy underwater: navigation under uncertainty, fault detection, and vehicles that know when they are lost. 2 OCEA 450 [Data Analysis for Ocean Science](/course/data-analysis-for-ocean-science)Working with real ocean data: gappy, noisy, unevenly sampled, and nothing like a textbook dataset. 1.5 ## Common questions ### Click to expand accordion Is housing guaranteed for first-year students? Yes, for all students entering directly from high school. Transfer students are housed as space allows, and the waitlist usually clears by mid-July. [Housing and residence life](#) ### Click to expand accordion How do I get between campuses? Accordion content - Officiis porta iusto luctus maecenas ultricies libero quisquam commodi do sequi facilisis, accusamus aut? Sapien dignissim nascetur nesciunt phasellus eros dis cupidatat tempor egestas cillum eveniet lobortis, sunt eos tellus atque quaerat, voluptatem exercitationem voluptatibus nesciunt, eveniet in dicta quae. ### Click to expand accordion What is the weather actually like? Accordion content - Officiis porta iusto luctus maecenas ultricies libero quisquam commodi do sequi facilisis, accusamus aut? Sapien dignissim nascetur nesciunt phasellus eros dis cupidatat tempor egestas cillum eveniet lobortis, sunt eos tellus atque quaerat, voluptatem exercitationem voluptatibus nesciunt, eveniet in dicta quae. ### Click to expand accordion What if I get seasick? Accordion content - Officiis porta iusto luctus maecenas ultricies libero quisquam commodi do sequi facilisis, accusamus aut? Sapien dignissim nascetur nesciunt phasellus eros dis cupidatat tempor egestas cillum eveniet lobortis, sunt eos tellus atque quaerat, voluptatem exercitationem voluptatibus nesciunt, eveniet in dicta quae. ### At a glance Credential awardedMS Degree levelgraduate Program length2 years Start termsfall ## Program Lead ![Undergraduate portrait, dormitory common room background — Person `person_portrait`.](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2026-01/Undergraduate_portrait_common_room.png.avif?itok=sIaRP6oh) ### Dr. Priya Iyer Professor of Ocean Engineering Related ## Other programs ![Campus center atrium, wide hero — Landing page imagery, admissions/home.](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2026-01/Campus_Plaza.png.avif?itok=L0fRIduM) BS ### Marine Engineering An engineering degree first and a marine one second. You will build a vehicle, test it in the basin, and probably break one before you graduate. - 4 years - Undergraduate Starts Fall [](/program/marine-engineering) ## Come and see the tidal flats for yourself Open days run four times a year, and the Wrightsville tour always includes the field station. [ Book an open day ](/standard-page/visit-campus) [ Contact the department ](/standard-page/contact-us)