Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Overview

Mission

Protecting the ocean starts with science. At WHOI, we believe the greatest challenges and opportunities require a collective effort to really make a difference. To support our mission for a collaborative community WHOI has hired a consultant Ombudsperson. You can contact Ombudsperson Alicia Booker at [email protected]. What is an Ombudsperson? Today, the WHOI community numbers over 1,000, including scientific and technical staff, ships’ crew and officers, and a variety of scientific, service, and administrative support staff, as well as about 130 Joint Program students. All of these individuals contribute to a common goal: to help advance research and understanding of the ocean and its role in shaping and sustaining the planet. It is not a mission that WHOI takes lightly, now or at any time over the course of its history. The ocean is too important to all of us. > I think that...

What it reported doing in 2024

Sponsored and institutional research in oceanography and related fields: of the 852 sponsored research awards, 572 awards are from 9 federal agencies and 280 are from 117 other sponsors. Institution research sponsored 347 projects from unrestricted funds. In addition, woods hole oceanographic institution issued 585 publications in 2024.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 96% of the money available for current operations came from contributions.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The nonprofit carried out 95% of its reported program work directly.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
042105850
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Website reviewed
Jul 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Headquarters
Woods Hole, MA, United States
Rating
81
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Public, Societal Benefit

Official website

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The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 87
  • Transparency & Controls: 70
  • Accountability: 89
  • Sustainability: 43
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 89.3%; rating input score 89
  • Program expense ratio: 87%; rating input score 87
  • Fundraising efficiency: $63.69 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 71st percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Public monitoring controls: 0 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 0
  • Public policy transparency: 2 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 29
  • Public financial transparency: 1 of 5 controls in place; rating input score 20
  • Impact reporting controls: 2 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 29
  • Public relationship transparency: No; rating input score 0

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 93.5%; rating input score 94; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Public governance controls: 1 of 4 controls in place; rating input score 25
  • Zakat policy transparency: Limited

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -2.6%; rating input score 17; 17th percentile among comparable filings
  • Operating reserve ratio: 2.22; rating input score 65; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.19; rating input score 70; 70th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 1.7%; rating input score 61; 61st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 3.6% per year; rating input score 100; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.4% per year; rating input score 100; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 3.1% per year; rating input score 100; 22nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 8 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 1 operating location identified
  • Where the money goes: 89.3% of revenue deployed · 87% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 29 of 31 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $307.4M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $1.3M · 46 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 43 of 43 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 12 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, executive pay, and related organizations
  • Filing history: 14 annual filings from 2010 to 2024
  • Money network: 18 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 3 filed related-organization links