Marine and Antarctic Science

The marine and Antarctic governance major prepares you to understand the science, policy and legal frameworks that govern and protect our oceans and Antarctica. Based in Hobart, the program offers access to leading organisations such as the Australian Antarctic Division, the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Antarctic Treaty bodies, enhancing your learning through proximity to active policy and decision-making environments.

Taking a multidisciplinary approach, you will develop the skills to communicate across government, industry and international organisations, and to contribute to policy development and environmental management. Your studies cover areas such as marine governance, Antarctic governance, global environmental governance and Antarctic geopolitics, providing a comprehensive understanding of the scientific, legal and geopolitical dimensions of key marine and environmental issues.

You will also have opportunities to engage with stakeholders including the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) and the Tasmanian Department of Natural Resources and Environment. These connections provide valuable insight into how governance operates in practice and help build industry networks that enhance your employability.

This major can also be combined with the Bachelor of Laws as part of a double degree, providing a strong pathway into legal and policy careers in marine and Antarctic governance.

Careers in marine and Antarctic governance include:

• Marine Governance Consultant: Provide advice and recommendations on legal rights and obligations, ensuring operations are conducted within the relevant frameworks of law and governance.
• Environmental Management: Ensure the operations of the business or research body adhere to environmental legislation and develop and implement strategies to promote environmental best practices.
• Project Manager: Responsibile for the planning and execution of a project, including coordination, budgeting, and progress reporting.
• Communications Manager : Oversee internal and external communications through various channels, synthesising and distilling complex, high-level information for a variety of audiences.
• Policy Analyst : Research data, relationships, and policy developments surrounding environmental challenges and provide recommendations for their solutions based on legislation and policies.

This major explores marine ecosystems and the role of plants and animals in sustaining ocean environments, from Tasmania’s temperate reefs to the Southern Ocean. As oceans face increasing pressure from climate change, biodiversity loss and human activity, understanding how these systems function and respond has never been more important.

You will develop a strong foundation in marine ecology, learning how species interact with each other and their environment, and how these relationships are shifting over time. Through a combination of theory, laboratory work and field-based learning, you will gain practical experience using contemporary research tools to monitor, analyse and interpret changes in marine ecosystems.

Tasmania’s diverse marine environments provide a natural laboratory for your studies, connecting your learning directly to real-world challenges in conservation, resource management and ecosystem restoration.

In your final year, you will complete an independent research project that includes an intensive field experience at Maria Island. You will design and carry out your own field study, developing skills in data collection, analysis and scientific communication that are directly applicable to careers in research, environmental management and conservation.

Careers in Marine biology include:

• Marine Park and spatial manager:  Manage marine areas and guide how they're used, shape conservation policy, and support marine spatial planning to ensure these environments are protected for future generations.
• Conservation biologist: Protect endangered marine species and ecosystems, uncover the reasons they're at risk, and use scientific research to guide conservation policy, population recovery, and habitat restoration.
• Antarctic / Polar Marine Scientist: Lead research on the world’s most southern continent, support discoveries, and advance Antarctic science.
• Environmental Impact Assessment Ecologist: Lead baseline surveys and environmental monitoring, support project approvals, evaluate impacts, and guide mitigation for coastal and offshore developments.
• Marine Biosecurity Officer: Monitor and manage marine pest risks and invasive species pathways across ports, vessels, and aquaculture, support surveillance efforts, response planning, and effective risk communication.
• Science Communicator / Marine Education Officer:Translate marine science for diverse audiences through education programs, community outreach, interpretive content, and media communications.
• Marine Data Scientist: Integrate biological and environmental data through GIS, satellite and drone imagery, eDNA, and acoustic monitoring to map habitats, track biodiversity change, and support ecological decision-making.

As climate change accelerates, understanding Earth’s oceans, ice and climate systems is essential to predict future risks, and inform global responses. This climate focused major combines oceanography, glaciology and geosciences. You will study the Southern Ocean’s primary role in atmospheric heat and carbon uptake, reconstruct Earth’s changing climate with Antarctic ice and sediment cores, and project Antarctic glaciers’ growing contribution to sea level rise. You will develop skills in analysing ocean and climate data, interpreting environmental change, and contributing to scientific solutions that inform policy, research and industry.

This interdisciplinary major, offered exclusively at the University of Tasmania, equips you with the expertise to evaluate climate risk in real-world contexts, an essential and under-represented skillset in the future job market. You will become part of a new generation of professionals Australia needs to build resilience through scientifically informed risk management and adaptation practices, particularly in areas where such expertise is often lacking. As a specialist in interconnected environmental systems and the complexities of today’s world, you will be well positioned to shape your own career path, whether in policy, industry, research, or climate advocacy.

Based in Hobart, you'll study at the heart of Australia’s Antarctic and Southern Ocean community. Learning from leading researchers, you’ll gain insight into organisations such as CSIRO and the Australian Antarctic Division, connecting your studies to real-world science and decision-making. Opportunities to engage with active research programs may include contributing to large-scale ocean and climate studies, along with potential experiences such as research voyages, that provide direct exposure to how ocean, ice and climate science is conducted in the field.

Careers in oceans, ice and climate include:

• Advisor or consultant for climate risk: Provide climate‑risk insights for government and industry, supporting assessment, planning, and informed decision‑making.
• Climate change adaptation: Support sea‑level rise planning through flood‑risk assessment and coastal adaptation strategies, contributing to national resilience and the protection of coastal environments.
• Carbon management: Implement carbon reduction practices for Australia’s corporate sector under Australia’s legislated commitment to achieve net-zero carbon by 2050.
• Climate repair: Apply interdisciplinary skills to support emerging enterprises and tech start‑ups focused on tackling the climate emergency and advancing sustainable solutions.
• Data analyst: Apply high-demand programming, artificial intelligence, and big‑data skills with a climate change focus in the insurance and corporate sectors and Australia’s fast‑growing tech industry.
• Antarctic researcher: Apply interdisciplinary skills to study the Southern Ocean and Antarctica, contributing to research programs with CSIRO, the Australian Antarctic Division, the University of Tasmania, and other leading research organisations.

This major explores how seafood and marine products can be produced sustainably to meet growing global demand, while balancing environmental, economic and community considerations. As one of the fastest-growing food sectors in the world, aquaculture plays a critical role in future food systems, and increasingly requires professionals who can navigate its environmental challenges and lead innovation in enhancing production.

You will learn how aquaculture systems operate across the full production cycle, from hatcheries to offshore farming and processing, including how technology and innovation maximise production, and examine how science, technology and management practices are used to reduce environmental impacts and improve sustainability outcomes. Your studies connect marine science with applied innovation, equipping you to contribute to responsible industry development, environmental monitoring, and policy.

Tasmania is at the forefront of aquaculture in Australia, making it a highly relevant place to study both the opportunities and challenges shaping the sector. Through strong links with industry and researchers, you will gain practical experience through site visits, fieldwork and engagement with professionals across fish farms, hatcheries and processing facilities. This exposure provides insight into the real-world complexity of aquaculture and the role it plays in supporting regional communities and economies.

Careers in sustainable Aauaculture include:

• Hatchery and Production Manager: Translate scientific advancements into innovation by enhancing commercial hatchery and production systems, and developing new aquaculture species.
• Fish Health and Nutrition Scientist: Conduct research and design innovative products and technologies to enhance animal welfare, improve performance, and ensure the quality of seafood products.
• Aquaculture Systems Engineer: Integrate animal and plant biology with advanced technology and multi-trophic systems to sustainably produce seafood in onshore, coastal, and offshore environments.
• Conservation Aquaculture Biologist: Apply marine plant and animal biology and physiology to explore, conserve, and safeguard threatened species and marine biodiversity for future generations.
• Aquatic Biosecurity Officer: Develop, implement, and enforce policies aimed at safeguarding Australian aquatic ecosystems while ensuring the sustainable future of commercial seafood production.

This major focuses on how wild fisheries can be managed to meet global food needs while protecting marine ecosystems and supporting communities that depend on them. Fisheries play a critical role in food security, livelihoods and cultural practices, and increasingly require science-led approaches to balance environmental sustainability with economic and social outcomes.

You will learn how fish stocks are assessed, how ecosystems respond to fishing pressures, and how management decisions are made across industry, government and international settings. Through a combination of scientific, technological and policy perspectives, you will develop the skills to evaluate complex challenges such as overfishing, climate impacts, and shifting ocean conditions, and contribute to practical, evidence-based solutions.

Your studies include hands-on experience with fisheries science and technology, and exposure to the needs of industry, regulators and communities. Based in Tasmania, you will benefit from strong connections to local fisheries and global research programs, giving you insight into real-world management and decision-making.

Careers in sustainable fisheries include:

• Marine/Fisheries Research Scientist: Explore everything from animal movement, genetics, and food webs to the economic drivers of fishing, working both on the water and in the lab.
• Fisheries Manager / Policy Officer: Work in collaboration with fishers, scientists, industry groups, and government agencies. Design rules for sustainable fishing, protecting habitats, and balancing community needs with conservation.
• Environmental / Fisheries Technician: This career provides the opportunity to work on boats sampling fish, testing water quality, identifying species, or helping scientists run field experiments, working in labs processing samples and supporting monitoring programs.
• Environmental/Fisheries Technician: You will be a hands-on problem solver collecting data required to manage and protect aquatic environments. As an Environmental and fisheries technician, you will an essential member of research and management teams.
• Environmental Consultant: Use scientific knowledge to advise governments and organisations make smarter, more sustainable decisions, developing fishing regulations, doing environmental impact studies, or designing plans to reduce harm to sensitive ecosystems.
• Fisheries Observer: Work onboard commercial vessels or in processing plants recording what’s being caught, how fishing gear is used, and whether protected species are affected.

In the major, explore interdisciplinary knowledge and skills that underpin the development of sustainable societies and solutions. Informed by international and local research, practice, and theory, this major allows you to develop specialist expertise across the physical and social sciences and humanities, emphasising student-led and problem-based learning.

It provides the frameworks for developing sustainability-oriented solutions in a range of fields and is relevant to a wide range of careers.

Choosing a double degree allows you to deepen your knowledge within two separate study areas. This means you can pursue your career and follow your passion at the same time. And when you graduate, you’ll have a set of skills that will really set you apart.

The Bachelor of Marine and Antarctic Science can be combined with a number of other degrees. Visit the Double Degrees page to learn more.

For honours course information, please visit the Bachelor of Marine and Antarctic Science with honours.

Visit the Marine and Antarctic Postgraduate page for postgraduate study options. These postgraduate courses combine marine science with a focus on the Southern Ocean and Antarctic, providing an ideal study experience for a career in marine biology and the fisheries and aquaculture industries.