Mary Blasius
Marine Sciences Professor
Orange Coast College
Costa Mesa, CA USA
“We all have our weaknesses and we all have our strengths. [Being successful] is about the checks and balances.”
Videos
By Roadtrip NationMary Blasius
Milestones
My road in life took a while to figure out.
Her parents both worked in the sciences—says she fell in love with science at a young age and grew up with a strong interest in pursuing it as a career.
Attended the University of California, Irvine, where she received her bachelor’s degree in biology with a focus in ecology.
Admits that she was only one of a few biology majors at that time that were not on a pre-med track, which initially made her feel isolated.
Decided to participate in the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP)—says getting involved helped her realize the benefits of pursuing a career in scientific research.
She worked in the atmospheric chemistry lab, where she conducted research on the environment and pollutants.
Attended graduate school at California State University, Long Beach, where she continued to study biology and worked as a teacher’s assistant.
Was inspired to apply her earlier research in some way to the study of animals, so she began measuring various environmental pollutants that can be found in marine animals like seals and sharks.
After graduating with her master’s degree, she began teaching marine science and ecology at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, CA.
Keep following my journey
Education
High School
Career
Marine Sciences Professor
I am a marine sciences teacher inspiring students to pursue careers in science.
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Science
Environment & Nature
Teaching / Mentoring
Day to Day
I teach a vareity of marine science and ecology classes so my daily tasks can be different based off of what subject I am teaching. Since I teach at the community college level, my main task every day is to figure out how to communicate the different subject areas effectively to students who are new to college or may have never had any exposure to these topics. Other daily tasks also include creating lesson plans and syllabi for my classes and grading papers.
Advice for Getting Started
Here's the first step for college students
Get involved. Join a club, volunteer / work in a lab, conduct independent research, etc. Discover the many different ways your major can be applied and the opportunities that it will give you.
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Peers:
"All biology majors go to medical school."
Challenges I Overcame
Financial
Interviewed By
UCI Roadtrip
University of California, Irvine students and alumni
