The Marine Times

Ryan Johnson is a marine biologist specializing in researching sharks. He is best known for the shark documentaries that he features in and hosts. Ryan moved to South Africa to pursue a scientific career researching the great white shark. He attended the University of Pretoria and graduated with his master’s degree. In 2011, he helped expose the illegal catching of a shark, an action which cause great controversy. Ryan has tagged great white sharks for research purposes.

 

 

Q: Have you always wanted to be marine biologist?

 

A: I think I decided I wanted to be a marine biologist at around 16 or 17. I was starting to look at university and careers and quickly realized that most of my life had been spent at, on or under the sea and this is what I wanted as a career. Marine biology and zoology was the obvious answer.

 

Q: What is the best part about being a marine biologist?

 

A: I think it is that inner reward that you are living your passion and that you are making a difference to the sharks and marine ecology of the world – for good.

 

 Q: What does marine biologist do on a daily basis?

 

A: It is incredibly variable. As you get higher up in the pecking order you become more focused on publishing and writing and you can find yourself behind a computer a lot more. This however, you need to be actively balance with staying connected in the field research side of your career. Myself I am different from most marine biologists in that I have a number of different interests in addition to research and academics. I also run a shark documentaries. So days can vary from guiding and filming tourists on shark dives, preparing for shark documentary expeditions, traveling the world filming documentaries, or heading out on our research boats to collect data on our relevant projects, or simply writing and doing fun administrative stuff on my computer.

 

Q: What is the worst/most challenging part?

 

A: I feel the most challenging part is that the product that you produce (scientific articles) has no direct financial reward but simply academic reward. It would be great if marine science was like other industries in that you produce a product or service and you get paid. But this is not the case.

 

Q: What classes should I take in high school?

 

Biology, maths with stats, maths with calculus, chemistry and I would always suggest a basic business subject.

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Q: What colleges are good for marine science?

 

A: All colleges are as good at the effort you put in. It is not an industry that is judged by the school you attend but what you produce I would rather say find a professor/scientists whose research you are interested in, and try to get into that college at postgraduate level.

 

Q: Where do you think marine science is headed in the future?

 

A: I am not really sure, I know a lot of big government funded institutes are retrenching scientists, and many more scientists are starting up small independent labs as there is limited spaces in the university. It is just about getting funding models that work sustainably to make such institutes viable long term. Focus is the naturally going to shift more and more documenting, predicating and mitigating the impact of climate change.

 

Q: What advice would you give a young person regarding your career?

 

A: Realist that most marine biologists become professional writers and spend most of their time on their computer. If this is you then great, if not, then look for other marine related careers such as a marine research technical, ROV pilot, commercial diver, tourism guide, underwater camera operator etc. There are many careers that can keep you enjoying and learning about marine life in addition to marine academics.

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Q: How did you first get interested in marine biology?

 

A: I loved the ocean and sea my entire life, especially growing up in New Zealand which is just a big island. It was this natural for me to want to make a contribution to protecting it whilst experiencing it as a profession.

 

Q: Do you enjoy working with dolphins, whales, sharks etc? Why?

 

A: Yes, because all these marine animals are very unique in their own ways. It’s definitely a joy to work with sharks because it is a dream come true to be able to work with these certain types of creatures. It can be scary at times, but it’s totally worth it to work with these amazing creatures.