Develop and offer ocean engineering continuing education activities for the people and industries of the state, nation and international community. Serve the public and engineering profession in Texas and the nation through participation by faculty in public and professional activities. Conduct a balanced program of applied and fundamental research that contributes to the better understanding of ocean engineering. Prepare graduates for entering professional engineering practice, continuing into graduate study, life-long learning and professional development. Ocean engineering is the application of basic engineering principles to the design, construction, planning, and management of engineered systems that operate within the marine environment.
Ocean engineering is a hybrid technical area utilizing techniques from many branches of engineering.
The Ocean Engineering curriculum integrates engineering design through the four year program with emphasis during the senior year. The design process focuses on decision-making through the application of basic sciences, mathematics, and engineering science to use appropriate resources to meet a stated objective or need. Integration of design occurs in several courses beginning with OCEN 201 and continuing through OCEN 301 and 400, and culminating in OCEN 407, the capstone design course. In this course, the students integrate the technical areas of wave mechanics, offshore structures and coastal processes studied previously. Industrial participation is provided throught collaboration with the Offshore Technology Research Center to give students insight into a real-world design problem.