Masters for Mark
NAFC Marine Centre staff member Mark Hamilton has been awarded a Masters degree in Applied Marine and Fisheries Ecology from the University of Aberdeen.
Mark - who is part of the fisheries team in the Centre's Marine Science and Technology department - took leave of absence from his job at NAFC last year to undertake the year-long course which he passed with distinction.
The Applied Marine and Fisheries Ecology Masters programme is heavily skills-based, and allowed Mark to develop his knowledge of statistical and GIS techniques. He believes that these skills will be useful when applied to future stock assessment work and fisheries research projects at the NAFC Marine Centre.
As part of the Masters programme Mark had to undertake an individual research project and chose to investigate links between crab and lobster landings in Shetland and environmental factors (such as wind, tide and temperature). Mark met with local creel fishermen to find out their opinions of how their landings are affected by the environment, and analysed landings and log-sheet data collected by the Shetland Shellfish Management Organisation (SSMO).
Mark commented that "my job already involved working with SSMO log sheet data, so it was good to be able to analyse landings data I was familiar with and interpret the findings. It was also valuable to be able to include fishermen's information in a scientific study. I am grateful to the SSMO for allowing me to use their data and also to all the fishermen who took the time to speak to me."
Mark now plans to look at how the results of his research can be incorporated into the management of the Shetland creel fisheries.
Congratulating Mark, Dr Beth Mouat, NAFC's Joint Head of Marine Science and Technology, commented that, "We are very proud of Mark’s achievements in his Masters Degree. The research we carry out here at NAFC would not be possible without the hard work of our experienced staff and we were delighted to be able to support Mark to gain additional skills and qualifications. The outputs of his research will be also very useful to local industry, so there are benefits all round!"
Originally from Dumfriesshire, Mark graduated from the University of Aberdeen in 2012 with a BSc (Hons.) degree in Marine Biology. Following graduation he undertook voluntary work at the NAFC Marine Centre to develop his skills and experience in fisheries science, after attending a field course there as part of his degree, before joining the staff. Mark has previously worked with local fisheries in Cambodia and the Philippines.