Marine Biology Personal Statement

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated by marine life. I visited the Baltimore Aquarium many times as a child; I remember being amazed by the different kinds of animals I saw. I spent my summers at the library reading about marine organisms, their habitats, their adaptations, and how they interacted with other organisms. In middle school, I participated in a project that consisted of decorating the classroom to represent a biome, and I worked on the marine biome. In the summer before 10th grade, I visited Sea World and was exposed to an even larger variety of marine organisms than I had been before. That fall, in English class we had to write a paper on our career goals; I decided I would like to be a marine biologist. During my senior year of high school I applied to Millersville University to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Biology, with a concentration in marine biology. Through my undergraduate studies, my interest in biological oceanography developed.
There are many overlapping aspects of biological oceanography and marine biology that interest me and why I want to pursue a graduate degree in this field. I am particularly interested in marine phytoplankton, their role in primary productivity, harmful algal blooms, and their significance as the base of the marine food web. I am also interested in
I am fascinated by what could be discovered in the oceans that could help pharmacology and medicine, as technology advances. I am passionate about species conservation and concerned about how human activity is affecting the health of the oceans through such problems as pollution, ocean acidification, overfishing, habitat destruction, and human-induced global warming. As the oceans are vital to human life in many ways, I believe it is important to study marine life; the knowledge gained will not only benefit humans but could also benefit the well-functioning of the entire marine