Emma House's career path to becoming a Project Officer at Berwickshire Marine Reserve. Emma Talks about looking for funding opportunities, making the most of the marine society at university, and how she tried to keep her options open. Current Job Tell us about your current role As Project Officer at Berwickshire Marine Reserve, I am leading a feasibility study for the next seven months, to monitor the populations of Atlantic wolffish and sea urchins, which are climate change indicator species. I am using historic data records of sea urchin populations, combined with diver citizen science data collection to understand whether populations are stable or in decline. Career Beginnings When you were 15, what job did you want and who did you ask for advice?I didn't know what I wanted to do, but we had a careers advisor at my school who we were provided with one-to-one meetings with. There was also an alumni website at my school, where you could look up what courses people studied and what they went on to do at university etc. I noticed one person studied marine biology and had volunteered in Greece rehabilitating turtles which inspired me!Did you have an interest in the environment at this time? Yes, I was interested in the environment growing up as my Dad loved going outdoors for walks - he was a biology teacher. I went rockpooling with him, enjoyed David Attenborough documentaries and loved going swimming at the beach. I grew up in Bristol but rarely went to beaches with good rockpools, so whenever we went on a trip to a nice coastal area, it was a treat! Some changing points for me would definitely be during geography fieldtrips at school - we learnt about coastal processes and I found it fascinating. What were your first steps in starting your career? I didn't get much experience throughout school e.g. volunteering, apart from at a charity shop. Going into university I wanted to take on any opportunity I could, both directly through my course and indirectly through the external experiences the university can offer. I applied for an Ecological and Environmental degree at the University of Edinburgh, to keep my knowledge broad, instead of specialising too soon. In first year I applied for funding to learn to dive in Croatia, which ended up being a reasonably easy process - just filling out an application form which outlines the importance of learning to dive etc. In the following year, I applied for further funding to travel to Iceland, to carry out a summer course called 'studying marine mammals in the wild'. This provided me with skills in fieldwork and coding and teamwork with international students. More specifically, I learnt a lot about cetaceans and techniques to identify them.Throughout university I was heavily involved in the Marine Science Society. This was an incredibly rewarding role and provided me with many contacts in marine science and skills in research as well as animal husbandry and events. This is a free opportunity that I would really recommend any student do, especially as my degree didn't involve much marine science. Moreover, society work and the outcomes are simply the result of how much effort you put into it. Simply put: you make it what you want it to be - it doesn't have to take up too much time, but also you can achieve a lot through society work. We managed to apply for funding to visit the Scottish Seabird centre in North Berwick and attend a boat ride to learn more about the coastal birds there! A few summers ago, I spent two months volunteering at St Abbs Research Station, where I lived with other volunteers in a free accommodation, maintaining the aquarium there. This involved animal husbandry and helping the researchers carry out their projects. During this month, I met and attended some Berwickshire Marine Reserve events, such as intertidal marine monitoring. This summer, I applied for a summer Marine Ranger position with the Berwickshire Marine Reserve (BMR) which I managed to obtain, mainly due to my society work as well as attending events the previous summer. Toward the end of the summer, we managed to obtain further funding to maintain my position at the BMR, but shifting it more to research! I continue to apply for funding to sustain my position in the future. Working in the third sector can be very unpredictable - completely down to funding opportunities. Career path and skills What does your career path look like? I believe my career path has been fairly linear so far, however, I did try to keep more doors open just in case it didn't go smoothly. I explored aquatic science, through obtaining my Great Crested Newt training and licence and expressed interest in the more sustainable route with environmental sciences, rather than keeping it specifically marine science. I am incredibly grateful that I could volunteer my time throughout university to obtain skills and experiences through the Marine Science Society and St Abbs Research Station. I would encourage students to research the funding opportunities universities offer - as well as local organisations. So many experiences in marine science, such as diving, can be incredibly expensive and inaccessible to many people - there is a lot more funding out there to support you getting these experiences than I realised.What skills were important for you to develop in your career? Teamwork: I developed these skills through the society work I did at University and it massively paid off working at the BMR, as I was a summer ranger with another person. It is a transferrable skill that I recommend anyone develop.Organisation: In most jobs, you will end up spinning lots of plates. For me, it involved creating and planning events, contacting stakeholders and much more. Organising information into a OneDrive or simply into folders can make a massive difference. Interpersonal skills: Whilst I was a summer marine ranger, I had to draw on my social interpersonal skills whilst I engaged with a variety of people. For example, I would teach and engage with children at rockpool rambles or in the education centre yet my new position now as a project officer involves more communications with local stakeholders. Being able to build relationships and work effectively with other people is vital in many aspects of life - not just your career! If I could invent any job in the environment sector, it would be... ...a climate anxiety therapist at schools! I believe students and young people need more support managing their thoughts and feelings about climate change. Throughout school, my friends and I didn't have this option and I believe it would have helped us. This article was published on Monday 19 October 2026
