Over 35 TAMUG faculty actively participate in extramural funded research encompassing both the basic and applied aspects of fields such as marine environmental studies, conservation, marine/maritime engineering, business, admiralty law, ocean policy and coastal zone management. Research is focused largely in the areas of coastal and beach processes, marine life studies, bay and estuary ecosystems, the offshore/deepwater environments, and geochemical cycling in the marine/aquatic/atmospheric systems.

In addition to the approximately 70 M.S. and PH.D. students supported by the research projects of TAMUG faculty, undergraduate students have many opportunities to participate in research, such as the Texas Institute of Oceanography Undergraduate Student Research Program, working as student workers and technicians on funded research programs, taking 485 classes or participating in the Undergraduate Research Scholars Program. Undergraduate students may work in the laboratory and at field sites throughout the world, participate in research cruises, present results at local, national and international meetings, and serve as authors on publications.

An average of 75 funded research projects are active at any one time. These projects bring an average of $4.5 million/year in 2005 to the Galveston campus from agencies such as the National Science Foundation, the Office of Naval Research, NOAA, EPA, Sea Grant, the State of Texas and a variety of private foundations and businesses. Most notable of these is the TAMUG-based Texas Institute of Oceanography, whose mission is to support Texas scientists conducting basic research in the marine sciences, and to provide the research and technological base for the development of marine-related businesses in Texas and around the Gulf of Mexico. Other research programs at TAMUG can be found on the Research Centers & Sites page.

TAMUG faculty, post-doctoral fellows, research staff and students are actively involved in research throughout the world from Alaska to Antarctica to American Somoa to Asia. Research is conducted with funding from federal, state, private and university sources including the National Science Foundation, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Geographic Society, U.S. Geological Survey, National Parks Service, Minerals Management Service, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Energy, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Texas General Land Office, Texas Department of State Health Services, Welch Foundation, DuPont, CONACYT, International Research Travel Assistance Grants, European Union Center for Excellence, Texas Institute of Oceanography and Research Development Fund.