TAMUCC Accepting Marine Biology Graduate Students as of July 2008

An interdisciplinary marine biology program has been approved by the Academic Excellence and Research Committee of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. This degree combines the strength of three universities within the Texas A&M University System including the Department of Life Sciences at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Marine Biology and Marine Sciences at Texas A&M University at Galveston, and Oceanography and Biology at Texas A&M University.

The graduate program will offer both the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in marine biology and begin accepting Ph.D. students for Fall 2008. The need for this program is based on the expansion of the field of marine biology since the beginning of the environmental movement and the popularization of marine biology in the media. The principal strengths of this marine biology program lie in the international recognition, scholarly productivity, and extramural funding of its diverse faculty, as well as the strategic location of two campuses on the Gulf of Mexico.

The goal of the proposed graduate program is to attract high-quality students interested in one or a combination of the sub disciplines of marine biology who wish to pursue careers in higher education, government, or private industry. The structure of the education provided by the program will ensure that highly qualified individuals will be sent into the job market or on to further education.

Students will earn one of the following degrees:

Doctor of Philosophy – Fall 2008
Master of Science, thesis & non-thesis option – Fall 2009