College of Science & Mathematics
Master of Science in Marine & Environmental Science
Student Outcomes Learning Assessment

Learning Objectives
 The main objective of the Master of Science program in Marine and Environmental Sciences (MMES) at the University of the Virgin Islands is to provide training and skills necessary for planning, conducting, and evaluating research in marine and environmental science as well as communicating the scientific rationale of management alternatives. Students will learn how to utilize research to manage natural resources, with a particular focus on the issues and challenges related to natural resource management in the Caribbean region.  Students will learn to work within a broader intellectual framework considering the social, political, economic and legal ramifications of their environmental research, becoming conversant in the language of both research and resource management. Graduates of the program are prepared for a wide array of careers in academic, government, non-profit, and private sectors.

 Assessment Methods

Rubrics created for assessment of thesis defense, thesis proposal, funding requests, thesis proposal presentation, and poster presentation will be analyzed for completion of the Learning Objectives.

Student Learning Outcomes
  1. Students completing the MMES program will have a foundational understanding of biological and physical processes across a land sea gradient as well as natural resource management issues as they pertain to these processes
    1. Rubric for Thesis defense year 2
  2. Students completing the MMES program will have an in-depth understanding of the biological, physical, and natural resource management issues related to their thesis topic
    1. Rubric for Thesis proposal year 1
    2. Rubric for Thesis defense year 2
  3. Students completing the MMES program will know how to obtain funding for a research problem that they have identified and designed a scientific approach to solving
    1. Rubric for Thesis proposal year 1
    2. Rubric for Proposal submitted for funding
  4. Students completing the MMES program will be able to effectively communicate scientific issues, questions and studies, including natural resource management issues, in writing to the scientific community
    1. Thesis proposal year 1
    2. Thesis year 2
    3. Manuscript submitted to a peer-reviewed journal
  5. Students completing the MMES program will be able to effectively communicate scientific questions and studies, including natural resource management issues, orally to the academic community
    1. Thesis proposal presentation year 1
    2. Thesis presentation year 2
    3. Poster or oral presentation at a regional, national or international scientific meeting
  6. Students completing the MMES program will be able to effectively communicate scientific questions and studies as well as natural resource management issues to the general public
    1. Public presentation
  7. Students completing the MMES program will be able to obtain employment in conducting scientific work or natural resource management or they will obtain admission into a PhD program
    1. Employment/graduate program upon completion of degree
  8. Students in the MMES program will be able to complete a thesis and thesis defense within six academic semesters of entering the program