Tide Talk Blog Post with Aziz Hassanali, Marine Biologist, Graduate Student and more!

Check out our recent chat with Aziz Hassanali, Marine Biologist, Graduate Student, Scuba Diver, CMA Aquatic Biologist, and CMERA Intern.

Moore Marine College and Coastal Marine Education and Research Academy (CMERA) provide hands on experience for students to be out in the water researching and tagging wildlife mainly sharks/rays but also turtles. 

What is your background and how did you choose this field?

• I am a current graduate student at Moore Marine College and an intern at CMERA, I have a advanced open water scuba license, and have gone on 4 study abroad programs (Colombia, Zavora, Galapagos Islands, Vancouver
  
  
• When I was 5 years old I visited the watershed aquarium and that is what sparked my interest in the field. From here I gained traction reading books, watching documentary's and doing everything I could growing up learning about the ocean life and the ecosystem around them. I then went to NSU (Nova Southeastern University) for undergraduate school, took a 2 year GAP and started hands on international experiences and working at aquariums to then join Moore Marine College as a founding graduate member.

What is your favorite part of your job and favorite Fin Pin?

•  Working with animals and other people who are also passionate about them
  
  
• You guys have so many good ones! I would say the tiger shark enamel pin since I am studying tiger sharks so I have a bias towards them.

What are your future goals?

• We just launched our first workshop. Its about the importance of Parrotfish in coral environments and we are hoping to educate 1,000 people throughout Florida and in the Bahamas through our public workshops!

What advice do you have for others who are interested in this field?

• Start gaining hands on experience in the field during college or with other industries and they can help skill building for jobs later and help in the long run. I have lots of experiences but that's because I started early and the earlier you start the better you will be.

What to learn more? 

• Check out the CMERA and Moore Marine College to apply for the programs or the research projects they have going on! You can also take online classes to earn your certification for sharks and rays handling or turtles.