Alumni Perspectives

One of SoMAS’ paramount objectives is to educate and train students to become the next generation of marine and atmospheric scientists, environmental resource managers, and citizens who possess a fundamental grasp of environmental issues and the choices that society faces in handling these issues.

Undergraduate David Conover & MSRC Alumni honor former Dean & Director Jerry Schubel

The first undergraduate degree offered through SoMAS was a minor in marine sciences established in 1988. In 1992, an Oceanography and Environmental Studies track was established in the Multidisciplinary Studies undergraduate degree program. Also in that year, the Marine Sciences Research Center (MSRC) offered its first undergraduate major, as the University’s Institute for Terrestrial and Planetary Atmospheres (ITPA) was transferred to MSRC, bringing with it the Atmospheric Sciences/Meteorology BS degree program. Over time, other undergraduate degree programs followed: a BA in Environmental Studies (2001) and a BS in Marine Biology and a BS in Marine Vertebrate Biology (both in 2005). The Environmental Studies major is designed for students anticipating a non-science career but one with a strong environmental bent, e.g., environmental journalism. The Marine Biology and Marine Vertebrate Biology degrees prepare students for a career in the sciences or environmental management. In 2016, the Sustainability Studies program became part of SoMAS, adding alumni with degrees in Sustainability Studies, Coastal Environmental Sciences, Environmental Humanities, Ecosystems and Human Impact, and Environmental Design, Policy, and Planning. Several students also graduate with a minor in Geospatial Sciences offered at SoMAS.

Graduate

MSRC’s first graduate degree program, the Marine Environmental Studies Program (MESP), was Alumni Day 2004 at Stony Brook Manhattan authorized in April 1970 and produced its first graduate in May 1971. The MESP program was a Masters of Science program designed for practicing professionals and recent college graduates with varied academic backgrounds. Its curriculum offered a strongly interdisciplinary examination of the diverse factors affecting the marine environment and was designed to prepare students for careers in the then-rapidly expanding fields of coastal management, environmental monitoring and protection and resource management. During the 1975-76 academic year, MSRC conducted an internal review of the MESP program. As a result of this review, the program name was changed to “Marine Environmental Sciences Program” and the program’s focus was shifted more towards hard science, with somewhat less emphasis being given to management and specific environmental problem-solving.

In April 1978, the Board of Trustees of the New York State Education Department approved MSRC’s Ph.D. program in coastal oceanography. The following September, the program was approved by New York Governor Hugh Carey. The Ph.D. program graduated its first two students in December, 1981.

In 2007, as MSRC was renamed the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, our graduate programs were re-titled to more properly reflect the unified educational experience within the school that is offered to both marine and atmospheric science students. At present, SoMAS offers both MS and Ph.D. degrees in Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, with concentrations in either the marine or atmospheric sciences.

In 2010, SoMAS established an MA in Marine Conservation and Policy, which provides students with an understanding of contemporary marine conservation and policy issues and helps them develop the necessary skills to apply this knowledge in marine conservation positions that require advanced training and a broad skill-set, but are not research-based.

Since 1971, SoMAS programs have produced over 1000 graduates. The alumni profiles below highlight a few of our graduates.

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Check out the articles below for features of our alumni

What do our alumni say about their experiences at SoMAS?

“I highly recommend Stony Brook and the Marine Sciences Research Center to prospective students. The faculty here are not only first-rate researchers; they sincerely care about seeing graduate students achieve their career goals in science. Students come to the SoMAS from a variety of backgrounds and with a broad range of interests. This diversity is on of the SoMAS’s greatest strengths. Students can pursue their interests in all areas of oceanographic research, and have the opportunity to participate in and design projects in locations ranging from the Long Island Sound to the Atlantic Ocean. Living near the water is an added plus. While some students rely on the sound as a study site, others are happy to go kayaking, swimming, sailing, and fishing there when they are not in the lab.”

Anitra Ingalls, Ph.D. 2002
Assistant Professor, University of Washington

"My marine remote sensing research progress, starting at SoMAS, attests to our ability to meet the challenges of marine science’s new frontier and to SoMAS's commitment to educating a new generation of marine scientists.”

Xiao-Hai Yan, Ph.D. 1989
Professor of Oceanography, Co-Director of Center for Remote Sensing
University of Delaware Graduate College of Marine Studies

“ Mead Allison SoMAS is at the vanguard of a new public awareness of the importance and fragility of the coastal zone. I cannot imagine a more exciting opportunity for prospective students seeking to make a meaningful contribution to important issues, while at the same time receiving a high quality education.”

Mead Allison, Ph.D. 1993
Associate Professor
Tulane University

“SoMAS offers a rare opportunity to interact with students and faculty from all over the world, in many disciplines, and of all ages. This diversity is a form of learning experience that no oceanography textbook can ever give.”

Shino Tanikawa Oglesby, M.S. 1997
Executive Director at NYC Soil & Water Conservation District

“ Diana Greenfield I was very happy with my decision to come to SoMAS at Stony Brook for my Ph.D., and I would highly recommend SoMAS to future students. One of the biggest assets of the department is its open and friendly atmosphere. Not only is it relatively easy to collaborate with other laboratories on site, but the majority of students socialize together creating a warm, welcoming environment, which is so important considering how much time one spends on campus and interacting with colleagues. Students who decide to attend SoMAS are rewarded with a wonderful opportunity to develop their own research interests with excellent faculty, and, when one has spare time, students can easily drive or take the train into New York City or hang out at the many nearby beaches.”

Dianne Greenfield. Ph.D. 2002
Research Assistant Professor, University of South Carolina & South Carolina Department of Natural Resources

“The interdisciplinary emphasis of the marine science program at Stony Brook has been one of its great strengths and prepared me well for my current position as an associate professor of environmental science at Rutgers University. In my research, I have recently been occupied tracking down mercury in some of our urban coastal waters, which as this photo of the New Jersey Meadowlands attests, should not be thought of as beyond repair. I am often struck by the importance of the experiences I had at SoMAS that were not directly related to my graduate research.

Through these experiences, I learned something about benthic ecology, organic geochemistry, and how to host a “distinguished visiting scholar,” all of which has been extremely useful as a teacher and a professional scientist. I have great memories of the positive work and social environment among the students and faculty at SoMAS, which recent visits back to Long Island tell me still exists.”

John Reinfelder, Ph.D. 1993
Associate Professor, Department of Environmental Sciences, Rutgers University

“ Tom Hurst with fish When I came to the MSRC to study the population biology of fishes, I was impressed by the breadth of topics addressed by the faculty. However, I couldn’t predict how valuable this diversity of interests would become to me. During the course of my research on the winter ecology of striped bass, I have frequently called upon the expertise of geologists, benthic ecologists, and physical oceanographers in planning experiments and interpreting findings. In addition I have had the opportunity to participate in a variety of estuarine research projects outside my own work. Through this cooperation, I have gained a much better understanding of my study organism, and the estuarine environment in which it lives. Working among such a diverse group of scientists has been an incredibly challenging experience, and one which has been invaluable to my professional development.”

Tom Hurst. Ph.D. 2000
Research Scientist, National Marine Fisheries Service

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