Marine Option Program Certificate

Program Coordinator: Lisa B. Parr
Email: lparr@hawaii.edu, uhhmop@hawaii.edu

Website: https://hilo.hawaii.edu/academics/mop/

Certificate Description:

The Marine Option Program (MOP) Certificate is an academic subject certificate available to all undergraduate students at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, regardless of major. The program combines marine-focused coursework with an independent skills project or internship tailored to the student’s interests, emphasizing applied and experiential learning. Students are provided opportunities to engage in diverse marine activities, such as scientific diving, sea turtle research, boating, marine mammal research and stranding response, and marine surveying, alongside networking with professional marine scientists.

Students in the program develop foundational skills in scientific communication, project design and execution, and oral and poster presentation, as well as gain broad experience in marine environments and professional practices. This certificate benefits students pursuing careers or further study in marine science, environmental management, education, research, or ocean-related fields, and complements a wide range of academic disciplines.

Student Learning Outcomes:

Upon successful completion of this certificate, students will be able to:

• Write a formal proposal that includes a literature review, project objectives, methodology, broader impacts, and a discussion of proposed deliverables.
• Conduct an independent project or internship.
• Write a final paper that includes a discussion of results.
• Develop and deliver a presentation in both an oral and poster format.

Curriculum (14 Credits)

1. Required Seminar (1)

   • MARE 100 Marine Option Program Seminar (1)

2. Required Project Course (4 Credits - Includes Project or Internship)

   • MARE 104 Marine Option Program Project (2) (Repeated Once, must be passed with a grade of B or better to fulfill requirement)

3. Survey class (3)

   • Choose one of:
     • MARE 140 Intro to Hawaiian Coral Reefs (3)
     • MARE 171 Marine Biology-Diversity (3)
     • MARE 201 Oceanography (3)

4. Electives (6) Complete 6 credits of elective courses, with 3 credits from Block I and 3 credits from Block II

   • Block I: (3 Credits Required)
   • Any MARE course (excluding 299, 399, 496, 499)
   • Block II: (3 Credits Required)
   • Any MARE course (excluding 299, 399, 496, 499)
   • AGEN 400 Aquaculture Engineering (4)
   • AQUA 254 Nutrition of Aquatic Organisms (3)
   • AQUA 262 Intro Aquaculture (3)
   • AQUA 352 Aquaculture of Fishes (3)
   • AQUA 353 Invertebrate & Algae Culture (3)
   • AQUA 425 Water Qual & Aquatic Product (3)
   • AQUA 466 Fisheries Science (3)
   • BIOL/PSY 437 Marine Mammal Behavior (3)
   • GEOG 470 Remote Sensing of Environment (3)
   • GEOG 480 Geog Info Sys & Visualization (3)
   • GEOL 344 Coastal Geology (3)
   • NRES 425 Marine Biogeochemistry (3)