Marine Science Degree | Eckerd College in Florida

One of the best undergrad marine science programs in the country

Thanks to an epic location in Florida and some amazing faculty

Our Marine Science program gives you one-on-one attention from Ph.D. professors from day one. Studying on Tampa Bay means you’ll be out on the water for four years doing the work that professionals do – and end up taking your pick of jobs and grad schools once you graduate with a marine science degree.

Full Department Website

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Choose your focus

Select Marine Biology, Marine Chemistry, Marine Geology or Marine Geophysics as your area of specialization within your broader liberal arts education.

Ocean setting

Class is often held in Florida waters off our seawall or on board our own fleet of vessels.

Hands-on research

Our professors attract millions of dollars in research funding, which means you could find yourself doing real research in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, Panama or Bermuda.

In Their Own Words

Beyond the Classroom

Join the NSF-funded “Scientist at Sea” program for research cruise experience, peer mentorship, and learning how to plan, execute and create professional research products.
Learn field research by doing population surveys of bottlenose dolphins in Boca Ciega Bay with the Eckerd College Dolphin Project.
Join Eckerd faculty as research assistants on projects in the Bahamas, the US Virgin Islands, Costa Rica and Panama.
Spend a summer at the Bermuda Institute for Ocean Sciences thanks to the Galbraith Scholarship, which takes care of all travel and housing, and comes with a stipend.

There’s no shortage of things to clean in the Gulf of Mexico. Join one of our coastal cleanup projects or volunteer with Tampa Bay Watch.
Sign up for one of our Alternative Spring Break service trips to orphanages, missions and communities in need in Ecuador, Panama, Puerto Rico and closer to home.

Service Pics on Flickr

Live on board a research vessel, where you’ll do reef habitat monitoring, lionfish research and shark tagging off the coast of Cuba.
Or study and travel in China, the Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, Indonesia, the Bahamas, the Canary Islands in Spain, Australia and many other prime locations.

Study Abroad Pics on Flickr

Eckerd Marine Science news

Reduce Single-Use Plastics at Eckerd College team educates youth at Jane Goodall event - October 29, 2024
Eckerd College senior joins ‘Florida Undergraduate Research Journal’ editorial board - September 19, 2024
From sea cucumbers to environmental DNA research, new Eckerd College marine science professor brings unique opportunities for students - September 18, 2024
Eckerd College junior scores coveted NOAA internship and Sigma Xi grant - September 5, 2024
National Science Foundation grant will do more than upgrade Eckerd College’s DARWIN software - August 29, 2024
Eckerd College marine science professor awarded prestigious grant to help rescue coral reefs - May 22, 2024

Popular classes

Marine and Freshwater Botany

Get wet and dirty studying local marine and freshwater plants, their relationship to each other and to their environment. Field trips.

Coastal Geology

This upper level class takes you to the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts of Florida to apply what you’ve learned in intro classes. Includes aerial reconnaissance missions.

Facilities

Galbraith Marine Science Laboratory houses laboratory classrooms, aquarium rooms, a marine sediment core facility, an oceanography lab, a computer laboratory and a state-of-the-art auditorium. Our continuous flow-thru sea water system is pumped directly from Tampa Bay to maintain specimens for extensive periods of time.

Our location gives us easy access to a wide variety of marine species in diverse coastal habitats, from sea grass beds to beaches and mangroves.

In addition to our own fleet of teaching vessels moored on campus in our private marina, Marine Science students learn aboard large research vessels owned by the Florida Institute of Oceanography.

And we’re part of the National Association of Marine Laboratories so our students get additional research and internship opportunities at marine labs around the country as well as in Bermuda, Panama and the U.S. Virgin Islands.