How to Become A Marine botanist South Africa

Marine botany is the study of flowering vascular plant species and marine algae that live in shallow seawater of the open ocean and the littoral zone, along shorelines of the intertidal zone and coastal wetlands, even in low-salinity brackish water of estuaries.

Education & Training to Become for a Marine botanist in South Africa

To become a marine botanist you usually have to study marine or environmental biology, marine science, marine environment or a related field at university.

You may also consider major streams that emphasise marine biology, such as aquaculture.

A bachelor degree in science can then follow into a major in marine biology or science.

To get into these courses you usually need to gain your Senior Secondary Certificate of Education.

Prerequisite subjects, or assumed knowledge, in one or more of English, mathematics, chemistry, earth and environmental science, biology and physics are normally required.

Universities have different prerequisites and some have flexible entry requirements. Contact the institutions you are interested in for more information.

Personal requirements needed for a Marine botanist in South Africa

Interested in the marine environment and its inhabitants

Analytical and problem-solving ability

Good written communication skills

Good mathematics skills

Able to work as part of a team

Caring and understanding

Strong logical thinking skills

How do you become a marine botanist?

Marine biologists must complete at least a bachelor’s degree, which takes about four years. Marine biologists who pursue master’s degrees may take an additional two to three years to complete their education, and earning a PhD will take up to six years more.

How long do you study to become a marine botanist in South Africa?

Degree: Various universities in South Africa offer training in Aquatic Science, as part of the Botany, Zoology and Ecology courses. The BSc degree takes three years to complete.

Is marine botany a good career?

Most marine biologists do their jobs because they love the work. It is a benefit in itself, even though compared to some other jobs, they don’t make a lot of money, and the work is not always steady. You will need to be good at science and biology to complete the education necessary to become a marine biologist.

Is it hard to get a job as a marine botanist?

While some of this may be true, there are also long days, travel to sometimes inconvenient places and frequently not enough income. Marine biologist jobs are hard to get, so to be competitive, you need to plan early.

Do marine botanist travel?

One thing that is common across this field is that marine biologists travel a lot. Travel is required for attending conferences, to remote research locations if your work is based on field research and any trips that may be a part of a course curriculum if you are teaching field-based courses.

Is studying marine botany hard?

It is a long and arduous journey to becoming a respectable marine biologist. In order to take up a marine biologist career, one needs to choose subjects such as mathematics, physics, and chemistry and of course biology during your undergrad years.

Do marine biologists get paid well?

Marine biologists earn an average salary of R 957905.96 per year in the South Africa. The specialties within marine biology can range in salary, with more technical marine biology roles that require extensive experience often providing better compensation.