GFDI - Ph.D Program

GFDI: PhD

The GFD Ph.D. program at Florida State University is a flexible, interdisciplinary program with a focus on addressing cutting-edge science questions about geophysical processes in our climate system. Students in our program create a unique curriculum designed for their own particular research goals, and work with our Faculty Associates from across many of our top-rated geoscience departments. Our high faculty to student ratio ensures that our students have significant faculty interaction. Our alumni are all employed in degree-related positions, from academia to governmental labs to private companies (check out our Alumni pages).

Underlying all of our research is the desire to better understand the processes that help drive the environment we live in. This understanding can be applied to better theoretical or computational models that are used to make predictions of water resources, weather, climate, or the biosphere.

During their time in the program, students have the opportunity to be exposed to a variety of methods by which we learn about dynamical earth systems, from observations to laboratory experiments to numerical modeling. Most students are supported by research grants associated with the faculty in the program, and work on issues related to these topics. Current research is ongoing in hurricanes, turbulence, wildfire dynamics, air-sea interactions, groundwater flow, karst environments, coastal processes, climate dynamics, biogeochemical cycling through the sea floor, and stochastic processes.

In addition to these projects there are larger collaborative efforts ongoing in through our Karst Environmental Center and our multiphase modeling group. Some of our students work with collaborators at Los Alamos National Laboratory, where we are partners with The Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics. These students spend part of their time working at Los Alamos with researchers on a variety of topics.

University fellowships are available, and some students are supported on graduate fellowships from NASA, NOAA, and other government agencies that fund our work.

Please take a look around our pages, and see the exciting work we are doing here at GFDI. Information on how to apply for the program is below. Please also see the GFDI Grad Student Handbook.

How to Apply to the GFD Ph. D. Program

It's easy to apply. Just follow the instructions below. You might want to print out this page first, and check each step off as you complete it. (You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view, edit, and print the application forms. If your computer is not compatible with this program you can email or write to request paper copies of the forms.)

First, Apply for Assistantship at GFDI.

Download the GFD Ph.D. Program's Application for Graduate Assistantship.
Fill it out. Edit the pdf file on screen, or print the form and neatly type or write your responses.
Send it. You can send the edited pdf file as an email attachment or you can send a printed copy by regular mail.
Ask 3 people who are acquainted with your academic and professional background to write letters of recommendation for you, and send them by regular mail to GFDI.

Second, Apply to FSU's Graduate School.

Both U.S. citizens and international students can apply at the following link: FSU Admissions Graduate Application. If you are an international student, please also see the FSU Graduate Admissions page.

You have applied to the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Ph.D. Program at Florida State University! You will be notified as soon as possible if your application is accepted.

Questions? Email or write (Attn: Ph.D Program) for more information.