Oceanographer

Although oceans make up 70 percent of the earth’s surface, and are home to 94 percent of life on the planet, the fact remains: Mankind knows very little about them. In fact, less than five percent of the earth’s oceans have been explored.

Because as an Oceanographer, it’s your job to explore the remaining 95 percent, you’ve therefore got a lot of work ahead of you.

Employed primarily by government agencies, museums, private research institutes, environmental organizations, and universities, you’re a Scientist who specializes in the sea as an Oceanographer. Your primary vocation, therefore, is research. That is, you study the ocean in search of new information about underwater animals and land, the result of which can lead to new environmental protection efforts, new food sources, new geological discoveries, and even new medical breakthroughs.

Naturally, your subject of study depends on what type of Oceanographer you are. If you’re a Marine Biologist, for instance, you study the plants and animals that live in the sea. If you’re a Marine Geologist, on the other hand, you study the minerals found in seabeds, as well as the structure and topography of the ocean floor. Meanwhile, if you’re a Marine Chemist, you study the chemical composition of seawater and its effects on ocean ecosystems.

Whether you study underwater fish or fissures, the common denominator is this: By collecting and analyzing samples, taking pictures, and conducting deep-sea dives, you seek to uncover the ocean’s most spectacular scientific secrets, essentially using life underwater to improve life on land.