Graduate programs in acoustics in the Physics and Oceanography Departments at the Naval Postgraduate School

The Departments of Physics and Oceanography at the Naval Postgraduate School offer graduate programs leading to MS and PhD degrees. The acoustic track within the Department of Physics offers degrees in applied physics and engineering acoustics. Engineering acoustics degrees can be completed in either resident or distance learning modes. The department also offers stand-alone academic certificate programs in fundamentals of engineering acoustics, underwater acoustics, and sonar system applications, with a set of three certificates leading to a MS degree in engineering acoustics. MS and PhD programs are interdisciplinary, with coursework, traditional lectures, and laboratory exercises drawn primarily from the fields of physics, electrical engineering, and fundamental acoustics. The Oceanography Department offers degrees in both Physical Oceanography and a joint degree with Meteorology that are interdisciplinary. Both oceanography degrees contain a fundamentals of ocean acoustics course which is tightly coupled to the curriculum through dispersion relations. Connections between ocean processes and detection theory are made through a course on tactical oceanography. Subjects covered in both departments include fundamentals of acoustics; the generation, propagation, and reception of sound in the ocean; acoustic signal processing; and detection fundamentals.