New master of fisheries science at Dal 'not your traditional' post-grad program

Dalhousie University is planning to launch a master of fisheries science program, which aims to teach data analysis, field work, stock assessment and applied fisheries management, all in 16 months.

The program is waiting for approval from the Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission, but the faculty is already preparing to receive its first cohort in September, expecting between 15 and 25 students.

Max Westhead, who helped develop the program with fellow Dalhousie professors Joanna Flemming and Aaron MacNeil, said the program is "not your traditional thesis-based master's or PhD program,” but instead prioritizes practical and professional development for its students.

“They'll be digging into analytics, data management, data visualization, and how to analyze data through mathematics and statistics. They'll also learn about oceanographic processes ... through the department of oceanography,” said Westhead, director of Dalhousie's marine affairs program.

“And they'll also learn about society, governance and how things are managed.”

Courses will reflect the fact that fisheries professionals come from all sorts of educational backgrounds, including biology and statistics.

The result will be comprehensive and "much more holistic-style training," said Flemming, a professor in Dalhousie's department of mathematics and statistics.

Flemming said projects like offshore wind and the so-called 30x30 goal — a commitment by 196 countries, including Canada, to protect 30 per cent of the Earth's land and water by 2030 — mean more fisheries experts are needed.

“We are going to see that managing marine space is complex and difficult. It requires spatial information, more data than we have,” said Flemming. “My feeling is there'll be lots of opportunities for these professionals.”

Indigenous communities and federal fisheries officers were among those consulted as part of the program's development.

David Keith, a DFO research scientist who was also consulted, said the federal Fisheries Department currently spends two to three years training people to become experts on stock assessment. 

He said the department hopes the Dalhousie program will create a pool of candidates that don’t need such a lengthy training period.

“They're going to show up and really be ready to go, and they're going to be interested in it,” he said. 

Keith added that with climate change and invasive species moving north, there’s an added pressure to know what is happening in Canadian waters, and how it is affecting fish.