<p>Dear Warblersrule:</p>
<p>Thank you for your responses and advice. You appear to have good knowledge of the field and I have a son who currently is looking at the field of sustainable aquaculture (fisheries or algae) and trying to decide on a college. His current favorites are MIT, Cornell and Brown. Would it be better for his future job prospects in that area to do an undergraduate degree in engineering (and what sort of engineering) than a degree in biology/marine biology? I think he plans on a MBA after his science or engineering degree.</p>
<p>We have always discounted the marine biology degree for the reasons you mention, but DS is an avid catch and release fisherman, very aware of the ecological issues, the world wide need of fish stocks, and the possibilities of algae, and not someone who expects to work with whales or sharks or go on sea cruises. If there is a better, more useful degree for someone with his interests I’d like to know. I’ve discovered that Cornell has a college that combines Bio and Environmental Engineering, and Brown’s Open Curriculum would allow him to take classes in both, but would love to hear if you have any thoughts on this.</p>