My son loves to study FISH. He would like to pursue a career in Fisheries, Fish Ecology, Marine Sciences, or something like that. Would prefer NE or (SouthEast) Canada. He is super smart, but his grades are not great. Currently a Junior in HS so no test info yet. Recommendations?
I’m not sure about what schools offer majors related to fish, but I do know there is intercollegiate Bass fishing tournaments. This link lists all the participating schools by state. Perhaps they offer fish related majors??
https://www.wideopenspaces.com/us-colleges-affiliated-bass-fishing-teams-pics/
Dalhousie in Halifax, Nova Scotia has very good programs for many majors that contain the word “marine”. Marine biology is one of them. They also have a combined marine biology / oceanography major, as well as an oceanography major.
If you son wants a smaller school (Dal has about 15,000 undergrads), then both Acadia University and St Francis Xavier also have strong marine biology programs. Both are also in Nova Scotia. I think that marine biology is probably a specialization within a biology major at both.
Canadian universities care a lot more about recent years of high school rather than “several years ago”. Your son’s freshman year grades will not matter at all. If he can pull up his grades for junior year, it will help him quite a bit.
The University of Maine comes to mind as another option.
UMaine, UNH, URI, College of the Atlantic?
Memorial University has a Fisheries and Marine Institute with several unique programs. https://www.mi.mun.ca/programsandcourses/programs/ Tuition at Memorial is a real bargain.
Take a look at Eckerd in Florida and College of Charleston in South Carolina.
I’d add U Conn, Stony Brook, and SUNY ESF to the excellent suggestions above.
That said, focusing on colleges with specialized majors may limit his options unnecessarily. Environmental jobs often require a master’s degree (natural resources, environmental management, conservation) or a PhD (marine biology, limnology), so it’s fine to wait until graduate school to take specialized courses in ichthyology. At the undergraduate level, it’s best to get a broad grounding in the natural sciences. If he decides to go the environmental policy route, courses in statistics and economics are very useful as well.
It’s difficult for us to offer helpful suggestions without knowing your financial situation. I recommend figuring out what you will be expected to pay as well as what you can afford to pay. Run an EFC calculator.
BU would have a top marine program, I think they call it BUMP. If you wanted to venture all the way to the left coast, CSU-Monterey Bay has an excellent marine biology program, is in one of the most beautiful areas in the world, and pretty easy to get into.
The University of New England in Biddeford, Maine might be of interest. It offers 4 programs: Marine Affairs, Marine Entrepreneurship, Marine Sciences (Marine Biology Track), and Marine Sciences (Oceanography Track). In addition, an environmental studies and an environmental science major are offered. There’s also a minor in aquaculture and aquarium sciences. https://www.une.edu/academics/programs
@Blondine - In addition to UNE, check out Maine Maritime Academy. It consistently is mentioned as one of the public colleges with the highest ROI. https://mainemaritime.edu/academics/undergraduate-programs/ocean-studies/
UNH
SUNY ESF
Here is a list of US programs:
https://fisheries.org/membership/continuing-education/list-of-north-american-colleges-and-universities-with-fisheries-programs/
List of North American Colleges and Universities with Fisheries Programs