Marine Science and Technology
PhD

The School for Marine Sciences & Technology’s (SMAST) PhD in Marine Science and Technology program emphasizes societal need-driven research and learning in an interdisciplinary environment. The PhD program focuses on observations, modeling, experimentation, and theory in the areas of ocean sciences, ocean technology, and marine policy.

Students work independently as well as collaboratively with our faculty as well as colleagues from other most highly regarded institutions to pursue a range of leading-edge research projects. Topical areas include, but are not limited to the following:

Biochemical cycling
Coastal Ecosystem Dynamics and Restoration
Computational Modeling
Fisheries Science
Marine Renewable Energy
Ocean Physics

View the complete list of faculty and their areas of expertise.

Highlights

Program requires four core courses (12 credits) and an additional 24 credit hours of courses (which includes both elective and seminar courses), which help prepare the student for the written and oral candidacy examinations
Upon completing the comprehensive exams, students are required to take a minimum of 18 credit hours toward their dissertation research
PhD students may be accepted as part-time students
Courses may be selected from those offered by UMass Dartmouth, other UMass campuses, and other academic institutions subject to approval by the SMAST Dean

At a glance

SMAST student achievements

Fulbright Fellowships
Knauss Marine Policy Fellowships
NOAA Sea Grant Fellowship in Population Dynamics
Nancy Sayles Day Foundation Research Award

Awards for presentations at various organizations

International Council for the Exploration of the Sea
American Meteorological Society
National Shellfisheries Association
International Pectinid Workshop
American Institute of Fishery Research Biologists
American Fisheries Society

Funding

The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth has several financial programs to assist graduate students with the cost of advanced studies. These programs apply to degree-seeking, matriculated students only.

Applicants should take an active role in contacting faculty member(s) who could potentially advise them, as well as make an effort to seek funding before applying.

Student placement

SMAST alums succeed at becoming involved in research, teaching, and project management in academia, private industry, and governmental agencies.

Student success

Tammy Silva '17

Tammy Silva, PhD '17 is a marine researcher and ecologist with NOAA Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. In this video, she describes her career studying whales.

UMassD advantages

University of São Paulo Dual PhD

A limited number of assistantships are available on a competitive basis. This award is subject to the work needs of the position and department, your satisfactory performance of duties, your academic record, and availability of funds, and may be subject to change.

Learn more about assistantships at UMass Dartmouth

International (F-1) students who receive science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees may be eligible to apply for a 24-month extension of their post-completion optional practical training (OPT). To learn about the eligibility criteria and detailed steps to apply, please review the International Student & Scholar Center (ISSC) OPT page and USCIS resources. F-1 students must consult with the ISSC to apply for STEM OPT.

Graduate admissions requirements

University requirements for graduate admissions

Submit an application via the online portal. Be sure to provide your full legal name and to capitalize the first letter of all proper nouns.
Pay non-refundable $60 application fee (American Express, Discover, MasterCard or Visa) via the online portal. For Nursing applicants, the non-refundable application fee is $75.
Statement of Purpose, minimum 300 words. Unless otherwise indicated in the program requirement details, indicate your graduate study objectives, research interests and experience, and business or industry experience if applicable. If you are applying for a teaching or research assistantship, include any special skills or experience that would assist us in making assistantship decisions.
Resume
Transcripts for all post-secondary institutions attended (regardless of whether a credential is earned or not). Unofficial transcripts are accepted for admissions application review, once enrolled a final official transcript is required. International students applying with an transcript evaluation, please submit that document with your unofficial transcripts. International applicants for Data Science must submit semester-by-semester transcripts as well as consolidated transcripts.
Many programs have specific recommendations/requirements, please see the additional program-specific requirements for more information.
International students: official TOEFL iBT, IELTS, Pearson PTE or Duolingo (if accepted by program) score. Unofficial scores are accepted for admissions application review, once enrolled official scores are required and must be sent by the testing agency (copies/scans not accepted). This is required of any applicant who did not earn a bachelor’s degree or higher degree from an accredited academic institution in the U.S. or accepted English-speaking country, see exemptions for more details. We require an overall/total minimum score of 72 on the TOEFL iBT or BAND 6.0 on the IELTS or a 52 on the Pearsons PTE Academic for entrance to any program and a minimum score of 79 on the TOEFL iBT or BAND 6.5 on the IELTS for consideration for a teaching assistantship. Some programs require higher minimum scores (see program-specific requirements). Most programs also accept the Duolingo with a minimum score of 95. The following programs do not accept the Duolingo: Art Education, Biology/Marine Biology, Nursing (MS, DNP, PhD), Psychology: Clinical, and Public Policy.
All official documents are required for enrollment, please have documents (ie. test scores) sent prior to the expiration.

Program-specific requirements

Candidates must submit the required application materials, university requirements and program-specific requirements, for consideration.

Completion of an undergraduate or graduate degree with a GPA of 3.00 or higher.
Completion of an undergraduate major in one of the basic scientific disciplines or engineering, or strong multidisciplinary training.
Completion of at least six semesters of coursework in the natural sciences, generally to include biology, chemistry, and/or physics.
Preparation in mathematics at least through integral calculus is strongly encouraged.

Requirements

GRE is optional.
3 letters of recommendation. Applicants will be required to provide the recommenders name and email address so we can contact the recommender for the letter of recommendation.

Program deadlines