Marine science personal statement

Reading time: 3 minutes
Price: Free download
Published: 22nd December 2019
Word count: 658 words
File format: Text

Growing up in the eastern shore of Patagonia, meters away from the South Atlantic, I developed a life-long fascination with the ocean. My childhood has played a determinant role in my interest in Oceanography which has eventually turned into my career. I have perused different careers which at times were extremely fulfilling. I have learned invaluable skills that expanded my horizons, however, deep inside I knew I was squandering my true passion for marine science.

I made my first steps at the Northern Virginia Community College and completed my B.S. in Oceanography at George Mason University (US). I was offered the unique opportunity to do an internship at the United States Geological Survey (USGS), which then led to a permanent position. I served as a physical science technician at the Florence Bascom Geoscience Center (USGS) for 3 years. I had the honor to work side by side with world-class scientists and to participate in the Pliocene Research, Interpretation, and Synoptic Mapping (PRISM4). PRISM4 is an international initiative that focuses on Late Pliocene climate modelling. I worked on marine samples from the IODP Expedition 353 from the Bay of Bengal to reconstruct sea surface salinity on a global scale utilizing planktonic foraminifera assemblages and their isotopic composition. In addition, I collaborated with paleo-mapping of microbenthic communities in the Chesapeake Bay area (US). The results from this program have been featured in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports. I spent a semester at the University Centre of Svalbard where I participated in a research expedition to the Arctic ocean aboard the R/V Helmer Hanssen. During my stay in Svalbard, I acquired proficiency with using multibeam echo-sounder and sub-bottom chirp profilers, collecting bathymetric measurements of poorly studied physio/biographic provinces of the Barents Sea bottomlands. I have also accrued skills in remote sensing and GIS collecting LIDAR map data of glacial landforms in the central valleys of Spitsbergen.

I have initiated an independent study that focuses on changes in Atlantic water advection into northern Svalbard during the Holocene. The two sediment cores utilized for the project were collected during the expedition HH17 to the Arctic ocean. I obtained funding to analyze stable isotope composition of biogenic carbonate samples. The preliminary results of the study were presented at two international conferences PAST Gateways in Durham, UK and AGU Fall Meeting in Washington, DC both in 2018. Currently, the manuscript is in preparation.

My research interests include coastal ecosystems, marine biota, paleotemperature reconstruction, ocean atmosphere interactions, and bathymetry. My academic background focused on environmental geology, GIS, climate dynamics, and oceanography. I am particularly interested in studying the challenging subject of climate change and its impacts on marine biota. Global temperatures are predicted to rise according to climatic simulations based on current carbon dioxide measurements. Warmer oceans and more acidic waters resulting from higher carbonic acid concentrations are expected to have dramatic impacts on marine ecosystems. In addition, progressive ocean warming will continue to reduce deep water formation slowing down the global thermohaline circulation, intensifying oxygen depletion, modifying the supply of micronutrients, altering primary productivity, triggering species range shifts, and extinctions. There is a crucial need for fundamental research into the effects of climate change on ocean dynamics and marine ecosystems. I am eager by the possibility of conducting research and broadening my knowledge of marine science, and I am certain I would make an excellent Ph.D. candidate.

The University of Southampton values in integrity, discipline, and research aligns with my academic goals and interests. The university will provide me a great opportunity to interact with a broader pool that is rich not only in scientific leadership and talents, but also in terms of gender, ethnic, and cultural equality that will enable me to acquire knowledge and develop long-term collaborations and life lasting friendships beyond academia. I am confident that I can contribute to the world-changing research, and I will be honored to be a graduate student of the University of Southampton.

Why this example works — strengths and ways to improve

This is a postgraduate (PhD) statement with unusually substantial research evidence: technician work, Arctic fieldwork, an independent funded project and conference presentations. Its weakness is that you list what you did far more than what you learned. You also never connect your Holocene paleoceanography experience to a defined doctoral question. The Southampton section is generic.

Subject motivation

deep inside I knew I was squandering my true passion for marine science

The Patagonian coastline gives your motivation a real origin. However, the opening relies on familiar phrases like 'life-long fascination' and 'true passion'. You mention other careers without saying what they were or why you left them, so the return to science lacks a concrete turning point.

Academic preparation

I obtained funding to analyze stable isotope composition of biogenic carbonate samples

This is strong doctoral preparation. You show independent initiative, a successful funding bid and a clear methodology, all tied to specific HH17 cores. Your degree, foraminifera assemblage work and two named 2018 conferences add credible depth. Briefly stating your preliminary findings would make this evidence stronger still.

Evidence and reflection

I acquired proficiency with using multibeam echo-sounder and sub-bottom chirp profilers

Your techniques are named precisely, but each one stops at acquisition. You never reflect on a problem you solved, an interpretation that surprised you, or how the PRISM4 work shaped your questions. The climate-impacts paragraph summarises the field in general rather than showing your own thinking.

Relevant experience

I served as a physical science technician at the Florence Bascom Geoscience Center

Three years at USGS, along with the IODP 353 samples and the R/V Helmer Hanssen expedition, is highly relevant. Saying the results 'have been featured' in IPCC reports needs care. Make clear these are programme outputs, and state your own contribution precisely so the claim does not overstate your role.

Credibility and voice

I am certain I would make an excellent Ph.D. candidate

Your evidence already makes the case, so this unsupported self-assessment weakens rather than strengthens it. Phrases like 'world-class scientists' and 'world-changing research' sound inflated. A few slips undermine your precision: 'perused' for 'pursued', 'eager by', 'values in', and 'life lasting'.

Structure and format

My research interests include coastal ecosystems, marine biota, paleotemperature reconstruction

The chronological middle works well. Later, your list of five broad interests, followed by a turn to marine biota, blurs your focus. Your paleoclimate record does not obviously lead to biota research. The closing paragraph is flattering but interchangeable, naming no Southampton group, supervisor, facility or project.

What you’ve done well

Your concrete, verifiable-sounding research specifics give the statement real substance: IODP Expedition 353, HH17 cores, PRISM4 and named conferences.
Your independent Holocene Atlantic water advection project shows initiative, a successful funding bid and progress toward publication, which is exactly what doctoral readers look for.

How this draft could improve

Replace the general climate-change summary with one specific research question. Explain how your Svalbard isotope work leads to it, and explain why it bridges paleoceanography and marine biota.
Rewrite the Southampton paragraph around concrete fit: the research groups, facilities or supervisors whose work matches your proposed question.
After each major experience, add a sentence on what you learned or would now do differently. Remove 'I am certain I would make an excellent' and correct the wording errors.

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