The Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (ATOC) is an interdisciplinary program that provides an educational and research environment to examine the dynamical, physical and chemical processes that occur in the atmosphere and the ocean. A major theme is the establishment of a physical basis for understanding, observing and modeling climate and global change. Graduate students admitted to ATOC will be eligible to receive an advanced degree in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences. Graduate students outside of ATOC can pursue the Graduate Certificate in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences while earning a graduate degree from another department at CU Boulder, or while taking coursework as a nondegree seeking student through Continuing Education's ACCESS Program provided they have already earned a bachelor's degree and meet the course prerequisites. For both thesis and non-thesis options, a total of 30 credit hours is required with at least 15 credit hours of ATOC courses numbered 5000 and above. Other specific course requirements are in the ATOC Graduate Handbook. For the thesis option, the final examination consists of an oral exam on the thesis. The non-thesis option requires the successful completion of a written final examination based on ATOC regular coursework requirements.