Open day

An online information session covering all five graduate programs, held ahead of the January application deadline.

Format

A short overview of each program from its director, followed by breakout rooms — one per program — where you can ask questions directly. The breakouts run for most of the session, because that is the part people find useful.

What it covers

How admission actually works. This differs by program and the difference matters. The doctoral program admits by supervisor and available funding rather than from a general pool, which is why contacting a prospective supervisor before applying is not etiquette but a practical necessity. The professional master's programs work more conventionally.

Entry requirements, honestly stated. Including which backgrounds can be admitted with bridging coursework and roughly what that adds to the degree.

The question we get most. A substantial share of inquiries about the MS in Marine Mammal Science come from people who have not yet completed an undergraduate degree. The session addresses this directly: it is a graduate program, the route in is a bachelor's degree in marine biology or equivalent, and that is a normal path rather than a rejection.

Registration

Registration is required and the link is sent the day before. The session is not recorded, so that questions can be answered candidly.

Anyone who cannot attend can write to the relevant program contact.

The fall open day runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday 17 October. It is the main visit event of the year for prospective undergraduates, and registration is required because several sessions have limited capacity.

The day

Morning. Welcome and an overview of the university, followed by program sessions running in parallel — one for each of the seven undergraduate degrees. Each session is led by faculty who teach in the program, not by admissions staff, and each ends with questions.

Midday. Lunch is provided. The academic departments staff tables through the break, which is where most of the useful conversations happen.

Afternoon. Tours run on a rotation: the teaching laboratories, the Marine Robotics and Test Basin, and R/V Cascadia Strait alongside at the university dock. Vessel tours are capacity limited and fill first, so book that slot when you register.

There is also a session on admissions, financial aid and the application timeline, aimed at families as much as at applicants.

Practical details

Parking is available on the north campus lot and is free on the day. The campus is walkable; the vessel tour involves a ten-minute walk to the dock and a ladder.

Dress for the weather. Much of the day is outdoors and no part of the program moves indoors because it is raining.

Questions about the day, or about access requirements, go to the admissions office.

R/V Cascadia Strait opens to visitors twice a year when the schedule allows, with tours running continuously between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Visitors go aboard in small groups and see the working parts of the ship: the bridge, the wet and dry laboratories, the aft deck with its A-frame and winches, and the CTD rosette that does most of the sampling on most cruises. Crew and scientists are aboard throughout and answer questions.

Oliver Brandt, who manages vessel operations, maintains that the tour program is the most valuable thing the ship does that produces no data.

Practical details

Free, and no booking required. Turn up at the university dock any time between 10 and 3; the last group goes aboard at 2:45 p.m.

Access to the vessel is by a gangway and there are ladders and high sills below deck. The main deck is accessible to visitors who can manage the gangway; the laboratories and bridge are not step-free. Crew will describe what is below for anyone who cannot go down, and there is no rush about it.

Flat, closed shoes are required. Children are welcome and must stay with an adult.

Tours are cancelled in poor weather or if the ship is called away, which does happen. Cancellation is posted on the events page by 8 a.m.