Marine Ecology Placement
News
Wildlife Conservation student dives into marine ecology placement
Wednesday, 13 March, 2024Making a splash this Science Week at BSU, final year BSc Wildlife Conservation student Marcus Hatcher writes about his experience diving into his work placement at the Archipelagos Marine Conservation Institute on the Greek Dodecanese Islands.
Joining the marine ecology team for a two-month internship within the institute, Marcus's placement centred on conducting many types of marine surveys to measure changes in the environment. Marcus learned multiple practical skills including freediving, how to use a snorkel, mask and fins, health and safety techniques and the relevant protocols and equipment for underwater surveys.
Writing about his motivations to go on the placement, Marcus said:
“There [were] several reasons for wanting to undertake a work placement of this type as an intern at a marine conservation institute. [...] I’ve always had a passion for marine biology, and I wanted to see if working in this field would be something I would be capable of and enjoy.”
Marcus continues:
“I was able to secure a significant amount of funding from the University which motivated me to look into a placement that was a little more exotic, allowing me to experience different cultures and work in areas that would otherwise be inaccessible.”
We’ve been lucky enough to hear about what a typical day looked like while on this conservation work placement from Marcus himself.
A typical day on the placement
9am: The morning briefing takes place in the main office where each team will be given instructions for the day. There's an opportunity to volunteer for a morning microplastic beach clean-up throughout the week.
9:30am: The group was expected to be in wetsuits, have their equipment present and be ready for the surveys that will be taking place that day. They then take the short walk down to a nearby beach where they'll be working.
10am: Once at the beach, Marcus and his fellow marine ecologists get in the water to begin their surveys. These include a remote underwater camera biodiversity survey, a transect biodiversity survey and a seagrass health assessment.
12pm: Time to head back to the base, rinse the salt water off the equipment and have some well-deserved lunch prepared by local chefs.
2pm: The group now prepares for the afternoon, which normally involves heading back to the beach to conduct more surveys, do admin work, work on research papers or input and analyse the data collected.
4pm: The last hour of the day would be used for cleaning and preparing the equipment for the next day, followed by a general de-brief of the work day.
Impact of the placement
On reflection of his time at Archipelagos Marine Conservation Institute Marcus wrote the following:
“The experience of living and working at Archipelagos was a very meaningful time of my life. It was amazing to make so many friends and meet so many new people. [...] The daily work I was able to experience at the institute was also very enjoyable and beneficial to my future career prospects, both in terms of the value of the work experience but also the direction that it provided me with making decisions for my future career prospects.”
Marcus’s time working on the internship helped cement his pursuit of a career in marine ecology. The experience solidified his passion for marine ecology, in his words “particularly in seagrass as a habitat and species” as the experience overall was very positive.
Marcus concludes: “I can say that because this experience has been so influential in my career decision-making and [in gaining] many new friends and wonderful experiences along the way, this internship has truly been life-changing.”
Bath Spa University has multiple avenues of funding that students can apply for to help them with work placements and other opportunities, such as our Scholarships and Bursaries and our Go Global initiative. You can also check out our BSc Wildlife Conservation course if you'd like to dip your toes into ecology.