A World Leader

Established in 1930, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) on Cape Cod is the largest private nonprofit ocean research, engineering, and education organization in the world today—and the most influential. With pioneering research and education programs, WHOI has been instrumental in advancing human understanding of the ocean and its relationship to the Earth.

Pivotal Discoveries

In the decades since its founding, WHOI researchers have contributed to many milestones in marine science, including seminal theories that explain the circulation and biogeochemistry of the ocean and the pivotal discovery of hypothermal vents on the ocean floor. In 1985, after unsuccessful attempts by many other expeditions, a team from WHOI discovered the wreck of the Titanic. And in 2010, WHOI researchers were called in to help BP estimate flow rates and organize mitigation strategies for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

A Dynamic Partnership

Scientists and educators at WHOI have collaborated with their colleagues at MIT for nearly a half century on marine research and education. In 1968, the two institutions forged an unprecedented partnership, combining their expertise to launch the premier graduate program for marine sciences—the MIT-WHOI Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Sciences and Engineering. Students have access to the resources and guidance of both world-class institutions, giving them an extraordinary opportunity to tackle some of the most pressing scientific and engineering questions facing our world.