Oceanography as a Career
Learn about a career in Oceanography.
What is Oceanography?The oceans hold 97 percent of the water on earth, and cover more than two-thirds of its surface. Oceanography is a field that employs marine scientists such as physicists, chemists, biologists, geologists, and engineers who specialize in gathering and analyzing information about the ocean. It includes the study of undersea mining, predicting and preventing pollution, and the interaction of the air and sea in weather forecasting.
What Do Oceanographers Do?
Oceanographers obtain information about the ocean through observations, surveys, and experiments. They analyze the water itself (waves, currents, and tides); the atmosphere; the land beneath it (ore and petroleum deposits, minerals, and oils); the coastal borders that surround it; and the contour of the ocean floor (ocean mountains, valleys, and depths). Their work is used for maps, charts, graphs, and special reports and manuals.
Oceanography includes the following specialties:
- Biological Oceanographers (marine biologists) study the plants and animals of the estuaries and oceans. Because the ocean is so large, they usually specialize in a particular area. They may research the dynamics of oceans or estuaries to assess how changes affect marine life, or examine the effect of pollution on organisms.
- Chemical Oceanographers (marine chemists) study the interaction of organic and inorganic compounds in the ocean and how they are used by ocean life, or what happens when compounds precipitate to the bottom. Other marine chemists search for natural products from the ocean that can be used in food production, to cure disease, or for industrial use.
- Geological Oceanographers (marine sedimentologists, paleontologists, geophysicists) study the ocean basins, ocean floor, and the coastline to learn about the history of the earth, to search for mineral resources (oil or metals), and gather information on global warming, sea-level rise, and coastal erosion.
- Physical Oceanographers study ocean currents, waves, estuarine and coastal circulation, world climate, and the interaction between the atmosphere and the ocean. They look at the physical properties and movement of the water in the ocean and determine what influences our environment.
- Ocean Engineers solve beach erosion problems and design and build port facilities, marine equipment, or a tower for offshore drilling. A structure near or on the ocean presents delicate situations for our environment. Corrosion, water pressure, sedimentation, storms, and other variables present a challenge for design and construction materials. Ocean engineers study how humans can work with or live in marine environments.
Where Do Oceanographers Work?
Oceanographers are employed with oil companies, corporations supporting the Department of Defense, environmental groups, or institutions of higher education working in teaching, research, writing and consultant activities. Federal agencies that employ oceanographers are the Oceanographer of the Navy, Office of Naval Research, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Education
Students interested in a career in oceanography should start preparing in their junior and senior year of high school by taking as many math courses as possible, along with chemistry, biology, physics, geology, and computer science. Graduate work in oceanography is required for most positions in research and teaching. In preparation for graduate work, a student should take mathematics through differential and integral calculus, one year of chemistry and physics, biology or geology, and a modern foreign language. The ability to discriminate detail among objects such as shape, size, color, or markings is also important.
Employment and Salary Outlook
About 40 percent of the oceanographers in the United States are employed with the federal government, 30 percent in universities and colleges and 30 percent in private industry. Growth in this career field also depends on available federal spending for research and development programs. Oil and mining companies will employ more oceanographers to look for oil, and industry will hire them to do consulting work and environmental studies.
Beginning salaries for oceanographers start at $17,600 to $26,700 a year with a bachelor’s degree; $28,700 with a master’s degree, and between $32,400 and $38,000 with a doctoral degree.
Sources
University of Delaware, Sea Grant Marine Advisory Service, College of Marine Studies, 700 Pilottown Road, Lewes, Delaware 19958.
Hopke, William E., The Encyclopedia of Careers and Vocational Guidance, Ninth Edition, Volume 2.
