Q & A
J u n e 2 017 15teenager that would give her
a good idea of what to expect.
There are a lot out there but
a recommendation would be
good! Hope you can help.
Scott, Portsmouth
Hi Scott,
I asked a lecturer
in Marine Biology
about this for you,
so you have it straight from
the ‘horse’s mouth’. As far as
GCSEs are concerned, your
daughter should be choosing
as many science subjects
as possible (and geography
and ICT would be good) and
then achieving grades high
enough to go on to ‘A’ level.
Most universities will want at
least two science subjects at ‘A’
level – one of them obviously
biology, but the others could
include chemistry, physics or
even maths and geography.
These requirements may vary
between universities (and each
will set their requirements out
in their prospectus) but as a
general guide, hopefully that
gives you the idea.
It’s a way off yet, but when
it does come to choosing
which universities to apply
for, it’s worth bearing in mind
that each institution will
have diff erent modules and
subjects that make up the
course – so it’s important to
look into exactly which topics
will be covered. Some may
have particular modules or
specialist topics which are of
particular interest, so delving
into the breakdown of each
course is important. Fieldwork
is also an important part ofa Marine Biology degree,
so this is another factor to
investigate. For example, some
universities will off er fi eld
trips and practical work based
around coral reefs, so if this is
something your daughter is
particularly interested in then
that might help when making a
decision.
As far as books go, there
are lots, and some of the
undergraduate texts can be
quite heavy-going. I’d suggest
looking at Marine Biology: A
Very Short Introduction by
Philip V. Mladenov (Oxford
University Press. This is a very
aff ordable, clear and accessible
read which covers all the main
topics in a user-friendly way;
some of it is a little ‘technical’,
but overall it gives a good idea
of what to expect.A
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question if it will help.David
WolfendenI have around twenty
years’ experience in
the aquarium trade.
I started out in public
aquariums as an
aquarist, and had
several happy years
there, maintaining
sharks and rays, tropical
and temperate marine
fi sh, jellies and octopus.
Following a brief stint
working with Aqua
Medic, I moved into
teaching on further
and higher education
courses – including
aquatics, of course!
As well as carrying out
research on transport
stress in marine fi sh, I’m
now Curator at Blue
Planet Aquarium in
Cheshire, which means
I get to work with the
largest collection of
Sharks in Europe, as
well as everything from
seahorses to wolf fi sh- who says you can’t
combine work and
pleasure?
editor@
ultramarinemagazine.
co.uk A biologist uses a quadrat to quantify invertebrates during an underwater survey in Hawaii. Image: Dr. Jean Kenyon,
NOAA/NMFS/PISC/CRED
... each institution will have different modules and
subjects that make up the course – so it’s important to
look into exactly which topics will be covered