<p>I've been really confused with what I want to major in Undergrad. My main intention was to do Marine Biology in Undergrad, but everyone was giving me these lectures of how it's not such a great idea. Now, im debating if I should just do Environmental Science, and do Marine Biology in Grad school. Now on the other hand, if I should do Biology in Undergrad and do Marine Biology in Grad school. I need help, I just really want to explore the coral reefs in the future with my profession. I definitely don't want to do something I will regret. Please guys, help me. Educate me with this whole process.</p>
<p>Not sure if you are already in college or not, but if not, enroll in a university with a strong marine biology program. In a relatively narrow field like marine biology, the school that you train in matters. Then, as soon as you can, get some experience in marine biology through internships (either paid or volunteer - if you can swing it). You will find opportunities within labs at the university or through NOAA science centers, USGS science centers, and some coastal state agencies. The experience will do a few things for you. First, you will get a sense of what marine biologists actually do. You will find they spend less time in the field (e.g., exploring reefs) than you might expect and more time in the lab processing samples and in the office analyzing and writing. Second, you will begin to make contacts, which will help with future opportunities, and you can find out how people who are employed as marine biologists got to those positions - what did they study and where did they study/work. Third, after you find out what marine biologists actually do and what it will take to be employed as a marine biologist, you may find that it’s not for you, and it’s better to discover that early than late. (You may find that it is exactly what you want and you are willing to do what it takes - I hope you do.) But if you find it is not for you and you are in a university then there will be other options for you to explore as you discover your path in life.</p>
<p>Im in community college right now. See, my goal now is to do Environmental Science at University of Maryland, then go to Hawaii to pursue my Marine Biology major. Can it work like that. Cause UMD doesn’t have any body of water within 50 miles of it radius.</p>
<p>My advice is to consider other majors, even outside of science if you have an interest there. Exploring the coral reefs is not a full-time job even for a research professor. You can explore to your heart’s content as a recreational SCUBA diver, and would probably derive more satisfaction by setting up your own saltwater reef tank aquarium at home. [Reef</a> aquarium - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reef_aquarium]Reef”>Reef aquarium - Wikipedia) Marine biology is a wonderful hobby, but the realities of a career in marine biology are probably not what you hope and expect them to be.</p>
<p>Travel writer/photographer. Airline pilot. Flight attendant. Maybe something in the hospitality field – the major U.S. hotel chains are international, and need trained people to manage hotels in resort communities worldwide.</p>
<p>I’m doing Marine Bio at UCLA right now and plan to go to UC San Diego for graduate school. At UCLA I have to do a full quarter of field research in some random place (I believe the last two places were somewhere in California and the French Polynesia, so it’s extremely wide). But most people in my major want to do things like that full time and study things that just aren’t being funded right now. </p>
<p>You wanna research whales? Sorry but the research grant you applied for wants algae. That’s generally what marine biologists end up having to do. A very small amount of time is spent in the field. If you aren’t prepared to deal with things like that, I might recommend taking a general biology major and then specializing in graduate school.</p>
<p>I was hoping to travel with Marine Bio, and expecting myself to be exploring the specialized field such as whales, coral reefs, and so on. If you can message me, can we talk?</p>
This has been asked a lot on these forums. The advice you’ve been given to avoid marine biology as an undergrad was a good one; I don’t think it’s a wise choice for an undergraduate degree. I vote for option #2 of the pathways you presented.</p>
<p>MusicCitySop is 100% correct about jobs in coral reef ecology and marine mammalogy being nearly nonexistent. (Rather regrettable and shortsighted. Bleaching is a huge problem, and many areas rely on corals and other attractions for tourism income.) There has been considerable research into the chemical aspects of corals, though. Corals produce tons of toxic chemicals that are a potential gold mine for drug research, so they’re becoming a hot topic in marine biomedicine. Of course, that would require you learning a lot more chemistry than most biology majors are comfortable with. </p>
<p>(S)he is also right about field research…you’re lucky if you get to spend more than two weeks in the field each year. Research cruises are expensive! Those doing coastal conservation work (often more geology than biology-oriented) get a bit more time outside, but most still spend more time inside than outside. Arguably the best job prospects for marine biology (which isn’t saying much) right now are in fisheries management and aquaculture. These don’t appeal to everyone (i.e. monitoring catfish in rural Texas or Arkansas isn’t exactly what prospective marine biologists think of). </p>
<p>Rather than write out a response, I will refer you to the rather long and detailed responses I’ve given others asking similar questions:</p>
<p>It is not at all necessary to attend college near water. In fact, most of my classmates and I attended landlocked colleges, though most have some sort of summer research experience in/near water.</p>
<p>Thank you for your responses and advice. You appear to have good knowledge of the field and I have a son who currently is looking at the field of sustainable aquaculture (fisheries or algae) and trying to decide on a college. His current favorites are MIT, Cornell and Brown. Would it be better for his future job prospects in that area to do an undergraduate degree in engineering (and what sort of engineering) than a degree in biology/marine biology? I think he plans on a MBA after his science or engineering degree.</p>
<p>We have always discounted the marine biology degree for the reasons you mention, but DS is an avid catch and release fisherman, very aware of the ecological issues, the world wide need of fish stocks, and the possibilities of algae, and not someone who expects to work with whales or sharks or go on sea cruises. If there is a better, more useful degree for someone with his interests I’d like to know. I’ve discovered that Cornell has a college that combines Bio and Environmental Engineering, and Brown’s Open Curriculum would allow him to take classes in both, but would love to hear if you have any thoughts on this.</p>
<p>My son is looking at Miami’s marine science program. An aspect of the program that he finds attractive is that you’re essentially compelled to double major by fulfilling the major requirements from one of the ‘hard’ sciences along with the marine science courses. In his case, he would do marine science/chemistry. Looking at the required courses, he would take more chemistry than I took as a chemistry major thirty years ago. He’d also take a lot of core biology, physics, and math courses. Our thought is that this addresses the issue of being too ‘narrow’ as a marine bio/science undergrad major. With these courses he could do anything from chemistry grad school, chemical engineering, or even med school.</p>
<p>Do you have any firsthand knowledge of the Miami program?</p>
If he’s interested in sustainable aquaculture, I think he’d do well with a BS in environmental science or fisheries management. Several coastal universities like UNH and U Washington have programs in the latter. </p>
<p>Given his interests and post-graduate plans, I think that would pair quite nicely with a second major in business. </p>
<p>I don’t think an undergraduate degree in engineering would be a marked improvement, although his chances of employment might be a bit better if he decides he’s not all that interested in aquaculture after all. There’s some very interesting research going on with biomimicry, however – for example, a team from MIT has examined tuna and penguins in an effort to make boats more efficient. </p>
<p>On a final note, I can’t speak highly enough of the program at Duke (and UNC). There is no place better for an undergraduate to study environmental science and policy, especially with a marine bent. Here’s one of my past posts about the relevant programs:</p>
I know of Rosenstiel primarily through reputation, as I ultimately decided against applying (for reasons that had nothing to do with academics). I personally believe it to be the best undergraduate program in the country. Unusually, it’s strong in all four subfields of oceanography (biological, chemical, geological, and physical), and recently it’s been attempting to branch out into marine policy and underwater archaeology as well. Its research opportunities are amazing, as is its location. In short, it’s a great place to be. </p>
<p>You should post a query on the Miami board for more info…I know SVMmom has/had a daughter in the program there, and I’ve seen others in the program over the years. They’d have more firsthand experience than I do.</p>
<p>Hi Warblersrule,
I am struggling to figure out what major I should do as well. I have read your other posts and found them to be very helpful! I am really interested in animals and the environment in general. I love marine science. I was thinking of double majoring in biology with a concentration in marine biology, and environmental science. I also don’t just want to do research in marine bio, but I am also just interested in wildlife bio in general. In that case, should I not concentrate in marine bio in the biology major? I also am very interested in conservation and such things like that. I am hoping to study zoology or marine bio in graduate school. if I wanted to do film/photography and work for example, National Geographic, do I have to have some major or education in filming and photography? The schools I am looking at are Brown, Cornell, Stanford, University of San Francisco, Santa Clara, and university of miami. Anyway, any advice?</p>
Double majoring in biology and environmental science strikes me as overkill. I think you’re much better off focusing on one (biology is probably more relevant) and taking relevant courses in the other. You don’t need to concentrate in marine biology, though given your interests, I do recommend looking for a good track in ecology or organismal biology within biology programs. </p>
<p>If you decide to pick up a second major, I recommend something useful that complements marine science and wildlife biology. Examples are public policy, statistics, and geography (including GIS).</p>
<p>You don’t need to major in photography to do it professionally, though I suppose it may help. It’s really your skills that matter. I’ve done a lot of photography for research projects, and I have only had a couple of classes and some on-site training.</p>