Kutztown University's Bachelor of
Science in oceanography received a
college values online top degree program
recognition and not only did we make the
top 10 list we were number one on that
list so according to college values
online our program in bachelors of
marine science with oceanography
concentration is number one in the
country
when I told my students I actually went
up and interrupted the marine bio lab to
tell them and they were all they burst
into applause it was really cute none of
them were surprised they were but they
were really they were really proud of
that and I'm and you know and it's it's
a small reflection on us and our program
it's a huge reflection on our students I
mean the fact that and these students
were so excited and said it's a
relatively small program but they are so
invested they're doing the research
they're taking the classes they're in
the lab all the time I knew where to
find them because they're in there
whether or not you know they're even
taking classes at that time they're
working together and I think that for
them it was affirmation they
made a good choice
the big strength that we have and the
reason we're able to have a program in
Pennsylvania is because of our
affiliation with the Chincoteague Bay
field station which is also a larger
it's a it's the field station component
of the larger marine science consortium
and that's a group of several
universities in Pennsylvania PASSHE
universities that have all joined it's been
around since the 1970s we're about to
celebrate our 50th year of the field
station and so we take our students we
don't sit in Pennsylvania and just tell
you about the ocean and tell you about
the coastline we actually take our
students from their very first incoming
class as a freshman or to their senior
level courses we bring them down to the
Eastern Shore of Virginia and we get
them out on boats we get them in the lab
with the microscopes and the marine
organisms the microfauna and the
plankton the macrofauna we get them
doing using equipment that they wouldn't
be able to have access to and they also
get to exposed to scientists and
researchers from other universities
we don't hug dolphins.   I do find myself telling
incoming students you know if you if you
just want to swim with dolphins at
SeaWorld you got to pay your money
that's not that's not this degree and it
is it is a rigorous science degree but
it's student coming out of here are
going to be extremely well prepared for
both entry-level jobs in the fields of
you know anything whether you're working
in marine research and working as a
technician aboard a research vessel we
have students alumni who have done that
we have students have gone on to work at
very competitive positions in museum in
aquariums so places like the National
Aquarium in Baltimore or Adventure
Aquarium in Camden and in various places
all over they have gotten these jobs
based on the experience that they got as
undergraduates here at Kutztown
