Tai Lun Ng, Grade 7, from Brightwood Elementary had the opportunity to ask J. Matt Hoch, Scientist, 10 questions as part of Career Day.

J. Matt Hoch's Career: Marine Scientist

What is the educational requirement?

You need a college education to be a marine biologist. Specifically, you need to major in biology, marine biology or some other science. Coursework in mathematics is usually necessary.

Often, additional education beyond college is neccessary to move forward in a marine biology career. Many marine biologists have masters degrees or even doctorates.

Why did you choose this career?

I chose to seek a career in science because I have a general curiosity about the natural world. I chose marine biology because I feel like the diversity of life in the sea is particularly interesting and amazing. A major reward of a career in science is that you can study the things that you find most exciting. In my case it is ocean life.

I decided to go into marine ecology for two different reasons. 1) Protection of the environment is becoming increasingly important, given advances in technology, which often (and unfortunately) lead to increased environmental risk. I wanted to be in the position to evaluate those risks and to solve problems when they happen. 2) The ocean is so huge and vast that there are gigantic amounts of undiscovered information. The ocean covers a majority of the planet, and I thought that as inhabitants of Earth, we humans should know as much about it as possible. I guess I think understanding the ocean should go before, say outer space or something (but not too much before).

Marine biology also offers the opportunity to travel to many beautiful parts of the world to do research. I began in Florida, scuba diving as a hobby. Since then I have been all around the coast of North America doing research.

What is the salary range?

A beginning Marine Biologist is not going to be rich. People become Marine Biologists because they place value on other things before money. Marine Biologists may not be super rich, but I would bet they have a better quality of life, job satisfaction and overall level of happiness than high stress land-based jobs. You can make a decent living as a Marine Biologist, but there is a wide variety of jobs available in the field.

Some Marine Biologists make their living as educators. Others work for government agencies, like the Evironmental Protection Agency or the Department of Fish and Wildlife. Many Marine Biologists work as researchers for private foundations, like the Nature Conservancy. A lot also work at colleges and universities, as researchers, professors, and yes, even students.

What are the dislikes and likes of this career?

The main dislikes of careers in Marine Biology are that you are stuck with the timing of the seasons and the tides. There will be times when there is very little to do because it is high tide in the winter, and you cannot really go out to the ocean to work. Other times, like springtime, seem so busy that it can be very tiring. There are certain very challenging aspects to Marine Biology, but it is really not bad- just exciting.

The likes of this career are huge. Marine Biologists basically do what they do because they love it. Work is very fun. If you are smart about it you can travel to beautiful places and do research. The entire process involves learning, so if you love to learn, it is excellent.

What is the future opportunities for a student to become a marine biologist?

The philosophy for success in any field is to work hard and stick with it, but you have to know what you need to do to prepare. Ask teachers, counselors and professionals what they would reccomend. Asking me this question is a good start.

Marine biologists have to know a lot of math, chemistry and other scientific fields. Take math classes and science classes and work hard in them. If you do not have any math, it will be VERY difficult to be a marine biologist.

The long term key to success for marine biology (or any science) is to become aquainted with the system. If you want to be a marine biologist, I would recommend going to the ocean, looking at the organisms and learning about them. Watch crabs crawl on the rocks, and notice what they are doing. How do other animals react? Learn the names of the animals and seaweeds at the beach. Once you are in high school, try to become a volunteer with a sea animal rescue organization- That is a good way to learn a lot and to meet other marine biologists who can teach you (if you don't live near the ocean, find an organization that works on river or lake conservation). When you go to college, take classes that do field work. Get a part time job working in a marine biology lab at your college and ask professors if you can do research with them.

Basically, try to be observant of your natural surroundings, and never stop learning. This can be fun: get a guide to sea-life, and go to the beach. Make a journal of what animals you see. That would be a good start.

I went to Palm Harbor and Ozona Elementary Schools, Safety Harbor Middle School, and Tarpon Springs High School. These are all in Florida in the Tampa Bay area. I went to Florida State Unversity in Tallahassee, FL and got a BS in Biological Sciences.

I am currently working on my PhD in Ecology at the State Unversity of New York, Stony Brook.

My first job that had anything remotely to do with Marine Biology was as an employee of Scuba Quest, a scuba diving store in Florida. I worked in the shop and also on the diving boat, taking people scuba diving in the Gulf of Mexico.

My first real job in marine biology was as an environmental scientist at the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. My job was collecting animals from different areas, identifying them and looking at the diversity of the ecological communities.