About the institute

At the Institute of Marine Science, we research a whole range of marine processes, from fisheries and aquaculture to oceanography and marine chemistry.

Professor Simon Thrush
Professor Simon Thrush, Head of Department

New Zealand has an extensive marine environment, more than twenty times larger than our land area, with 75% of our population living within 10km of the sea.

Marine ecosystems are central to our culture and spiritual wellbeing and provide many economic benefits.

Improving the stewardship and diversity of our marine ecosystems is vital for the future of our oceans and is an ongoing major challenge.

Our science and training must rise to this challenge by contributing to not only our understanding of how these ecosystems work and how they respond to change but also how we as a society can develop better systems of governance and management.

The Institute of Marine Science draws on marine science expertise within the Schools of Biological Sciences, Chemical Sciences and Environment, and the Departments of Physics, Statistics and Engineering Science – as well as businesses and organisations in New Zealand and overseas – to address those challenges.

Contributing positive solutions to the pressing issues of global change, sustainable resource use, conservation and wise management is essential for our maritime city and country.

Professor Simon Thrush Institute of Marine Science

We seek to understand how marine organisms sense and respond to their environment; the interactions between human activities and natural processes in the marine environment; the development of useful properties of marine organisms for human uses, and how natural processes operate in the marine environment.

The Institute of Marine Science has an active and diverse programme of study. Our enrolments continue to grow, reflecting interest and the relevance of marine science. Students benefit from highly creative cross-disciplinary study options for our undergraduate and postgraduate courses across the Faculty of Science.

While most of our undergraduate teaching is conducted at the City Campus, field courses may use our excellent research facilities at the Leigh Marine Laboratory and our research vessel, Te Kaihōpara.

For postgraduate students undertaking their research at the Leigh Marine Laboratory’s purpose-built facilities, there are great opportunities for collaborative and interdisciplinary work which help develop the necessary skills for our next generation of marine scientists.

Contributing positive solutions to the pressing issues of global change, sustainable resource use, conservation and wise management is essential for our maritime city and country.

Enjoy your marine studies. We look forward to working with you.

Professor Simon Thrush
Head of Marine Science