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Marine Biology and Sustainable Aquaculture

Bachelor of Science

Next start date is July 17. Applying is easy and free!

Study and conserve

marine resources.

Examine marine life through a scientific lens. Protect animals, plants, and habitats. Discover responsible, sustainable uses for marine resources!

Program Overview

The B.S. in Marine Biology and Sustainable Aquaculture prepares students for a broad range of careers helping protect, preserve, maintain, and grow marine organisms and environments. This degree provides students with a broad emphasis on both marine biology and aquaculture and encompasses coursework with the rigor to prepare students for further study in graduate school or even starting their own aquaculture enterprise.


Program Features

+ One-on-one academic and professional advising as our world-class faculty and trained staff strive to make your professional and academic goals a reality. 

+ Unity College is an accredited institution by New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE). 

+ Experiential Online. Experiential programs are delivered 100% online with fieldwork designed with the working professional in mind. 

+ Study when and where you want and finish your degree while still working full-time. 

+ Make professional connections with leaders in your field. 

+ Get job placement assistance. Browse our online job board and use free tools through our career services

+ Multiple start dates. Begin your program on your time. Choose from eight year-round start dates.

Pursue a concentration in environmental GIS, renewable energy, sustainable business, wildlife ecology, or animal health and behavior.

+ Transfer friendly! Our staff will work closely with you to determine how coursework completed at other accredited institutions satisfies the requirements of your Unity College degree. We may accept up to 90 credits.*

* Bachelor’s degree requirements include completion of specific courses and a minimum of 30 credits of 300- or 400-level course work. 

 


Experiential and Immersive Coursework

Marine Biology Coursework

Distance Sampling Population Estimate

Through a simulation custom created by the Unity College XR Innovation Lab, students are tasked with identifying different species of whales based on their blow. In addition, students were asked to estimate how far the whales were from the boat and the number of whales in the area giving the students a feel of what being marine researcher.

Marine Biology Coursework

Orientation of a Field Station

Students were asked to explore an island using a 360° video created by the Unity College XR Innovation Lab. They were asked to research this remote area and create ethograms based on behavioral observations of the animals on the island.

Marine Biology Coursework

Sustainable Seafood Watch

In the local communities where each student lives, they were tasked with creating a graph of sustainability based on the seafood offerings at their local grocery store. They were asked to investigate what their local communities were able to offer.


Unity College student, Courtney, recently took the Form and Function of Unique Marine Ecosystems course at Unity College with Professor Tanya Lubansky.

“I am majoring in Marine Biology & Sustainable Aquaculture with a concentration in Animal Health & Behavior and plan to graduate in December 2022.

I started my college career back in 2014 at CSULB and attended classes there for almost three years, but life happened, and I was no longer in a situation where I wanted to participate in college. While attending CSULB, I volunteered at the Aquarium of the Pacific as a Husbandry Volunteer for about a year. That is where I got the aquarist bug. With that experience and working at pet stores in the aquarium section, I was able to get a paid aquarist position at SeaWorld San Diego. My favorite animals that I got to work with are sharks, octopuses, and sea turtles. The three years that I worked there taught me so much and made me realize that I wanted to go back to school to better understand the aquarium world so that I could be a better aquarist. That is when I found Unity! I love how the school is structured so much that I decided to leave my past job to dedicate my time to school and finish faster by taking two classes at once.

One of my favorite classes so far has been Unique Marine Ecosystems with Professor Tanya Lubansky. In Unique Marine Ecosystems, we studied unique marine ecosystems around the world and how the organisms within them interact, and I believe that it strengthened my knowledge of caring for them in an aquarium setting.

I love that this class is directly applicable to my desired field. I look forward to using all of my knowledge from Unity to help me excel and be an inspirational leader in a future dedicated to caring for exotic marine species.“

Unity College student, Erin, took the Freshwater & Marine Resources course with Professor Amanda Moeser.

“I love taking classes with Unity College because the online format allows me to continue to work while I go to school. The classes are engaging, and the professors are always easily reachable if I have questions about the coursework.

I have always had a passion for caring for those that are unable to care for themselves. Through my studies at Unity College, I am learning that by working towards saving our ocean’s ecosystems we can not only save our ocean friends and their environment but also provide small coastal communities with food security.

It is my dream to be a tropical marine ecologist working with small coastal communities to help restore reef systems so that animals and humans can thrive. I believe the education that I gain from Unity College will be fundamental in helping me save as much of the ocean as I can.”

Unity College student, Courtney, recently took the Form and Function of Unique Marine Ecosystems course at Unity College with Professor Tanya Lubansky and the Animal Nutrition course with Professor Anooshrokh Rakhshandeh.

“I am majoring in Marine Biology & Sustainable Aquaculture with a concentration in Animal Health & Behavior and plan to graduate in December 2022.

I started my college career back in 2014 at CSULB and attended classes there for almost three years, but life happened, and I was no longer in a situation where I wanted to participate in college. While attending CSULB, I volunteered at the Aquarium of the Pacific as a Husbandry Volunteer for about a year. That is where I got the aquarist bug. With that experience and working at pet stores in the aquarium section, I was able to get a paid aquarist position at SeaWorld San Diego. My favorite animals that I got to work with are sharks, octopuses, and sea turtles. The three years that I worked there taught me so much and made me realize that I wanted to go back to school to better understand the aquarium world so that I could be a better aquarist. That is when I found Unity! I love how the school is structured so much that I decided to leave my past job to dedicate my time to school and finish faster by taking two classes at once.

My favorite classes so far have been Unique Marine Ecosystems with Professor Tanya Lubansky and Animal Nutrition with Professor Anooshrokh Rakhshandeh. In Unique Marine Ecosystems, we studied unique marine ecosystems around the world and how the organisms within them interact, and I believe that it strengthened my knowledge of caring for them in an aquarium setting.

In Animal Nutrition, we learned about animal nutrition, an essential aspect of caring for animals in all zoological settings. It allowed me to understand why animals need a complex diet to grow and maintain their health.

I love that both classes were directly applicable to my desired field. I look forward to using all of my knowledge from Unity to help me excel and be an inspirational leader in a future dedicated to caring for exotic marine species.“


Experts in the Field

At Unity College, our Faculty is comprised of a wide range of environmental science experts who in addition to teaching, conduct their own research and various fieldwork.

Tanya Lubansky Unity Faculty

Dr. Tanya Lubansky

Instructor of Marine Biology

Dr. Tanya Lubansky received her B.S. in Environmental Sciences at Wheaton College and her Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolution at Rutgers University. Her research focuses on quantifying individual movement behavior and social networks of humpback whales within the Gulf of Maine. Her field work was conducted in collaboration with Allied Whale, a nonprofit organization within College of the Atlantic of Bar Harbor, ME.

Dr. Lubansky has worked in a variety of positions from non profits to tourism industries. She brings value to the students by sharing her experiences in her career and encourage students to look into a wide range of potential job options.

As Dr. Lubansky creates her coursework, she keeps the students future careers in mind and makes sure to ask them to work on projects that will directly apply to their future goals.

Dr. Christiana Wittmaack

Instructor of Marine Biology

Christiana Wittmaack obtained her Ph.D. in Environmental Toxicology from the Institute of Environmental Health, Texas Tech University, in Lubbock Texas. There she conducted research on analytical and molecular toxicology in whales. She also collaborated on projects involving sea turtles and sharks.  It is hard to imagine a marine mammal lab sitting right in the middle of the Texas panhandle (where the local flora and fauna includes prairie dogs and tumbleweeds) but Christiana made this high desert prairie her home, where she currently resides. She obtained her M.S. in Coastal Zone Management from Nova Southeastern University Oceanographic Center. While there, she studied pinnipeds and domoic acid toxicosis. She received her B.S. in Psychology from the University of Phoenix. Currently, Christiana is conducting endocrinological research on whales and sharks. Christiana’s research interests are primarily in the marine mammal sciences. She has worked with pinnipeds in rehabilitative hospitals, participated in health studies of pinnipeds, conducted line transect surveys for beaked whales in the Bahamas, and delved into laboratory work where she works with whale cell lines and blubber biopsies. She has taught toxicology at both the graduate and undergraduate level and trained numerous graduate and undergraduate interns. Her teaching philosophy is one of teamwork. Everyone is treated equally, and she takes an interest in all her students, striving to help them grasp content and technique.


Small Class Sizes

Small Class Sizes

At Unity College, we believe our students are not just a number. The value of small class size intimacy is just as important to us in our distance education program as it is in traditional classroom settings. We give the benefit of creating tight-knit communities where networking can flourish. By keeping our class sizes small, our faculty can dedicate their time to providing all one-on-one guidance when needed by a student.

Degree Requirements and Courses

The Marine Biology and Sustainable Aquaculture degree requires 120 credits, including 30 that must be completed at the 300 level or above. You may transfer in up to 90 credits from outside accredited institutions. For more details, browse our Marine Biology and Sustainable Aquaculture degree checklist. View our full course catalog for a better look into your program, then apply online for free to get started.

Frequently Asked Questions

Career Outlook

Earn your degree.

Unlock new opportunities.

44,700

Number of Biologist jobs in the U.S., 2019.

$82,220

Median pay for Biologists in 2019.

2%

Estimated growth for Biologist jobs in the U.S. through 2029.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Unity College cannot guarantee employment. Salary data represents averaged earnings for the occupations listed and includes workers at all levels of education and experience. 



Faculty Profiles

Seek out knowledge.

Learn from leaders.

View our full course catalog for a better look into your program. Then apply online for free to get started.



Distance Education Concierge

Last Updated on May 17, 2023