“Aquaculture is a multi disciplinary industry which requires an in depth understanding of biology, chemistry, engineering, and business. NSAC offers back-ground courses in all areas that will help you be successful in any aquaculture career.” Randy Peach, Class of 1999

Randy Peach, Class of 1999

“The practical experience gained at NSAC provides comfort to prospective employers. After graduating with my undergraduate degree at NSAC, I perused a graduate degree also at NSAC in partnership with Dalhousie University and the National Research Council. During my graduate studies, I moonlighted with the fish health department at the National Research Council. From there, I moved to Vancouver, BC and worked with a small aquaculture supply company selling fish health and  biosecurity products. My time in BC was short lived and I returned to manage a shellfish processing plant in PEI. After a year of selling oysters into the Canadian and US market, I was hired as a technical sales rep for Novartis Animal health Canada. I have been with Novartis Animal Health for the past six years and am currently the North American sales and marketing manager for the Novartis Aqua Health business.”

Alexander Taylor, Class of 2010

“Currently I am a Fish Health Technician for Mainstream Canada in Tofino, BC.  I maintain bio-security throughout sites in my area.  I work closely with our Veterinarian to catch signs of disease and environmental damage. Working in the field the knowledge of professional reports has made me a valuable employee for my company.  At the AC I didn’t appreciate the monotony of formal labs, but now they’ve helped me do my job well.”

Kelly Gillis, Class of 2007

“Within 2 weeks of job searching after leaving NSAC I had 2 interviews in BC.  Currently I am employed by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans as a Fishery Officer in PE, enforcing the Fisheries Act.  My role includes protecting fishery resources and fish habitat.  Patrols in this field are done on land, sea and in the air. Since leaving NSAC I also worked for a year as an algae biologist at a geoduck hatchery on Vancouver Island. 

The amount of hands-on learning and the availability of one-on-one teaching makes for sought after employees upon completion of your degree at NSAC.”

“NSAC provides the best expertise, lab facilities and hands-on training to help students really excel.  The most rewarding part of my experience at NSAC was to work on Atlantic salmon nutrition.  That experience made me realize what type of work I really wanted to do.  It set the path for my graduate work and my future career.” Sean Tibbetts, Class of 1996,1999

Sean Tibbetts, Class of 1996, 1999

“Much of what has been learned about terrestrial animal agriculture is directly applicable to aquatics species.  The fundamentals of animal production, health and reproduction that I learned as an undergraduate student at NSAC have been essential to my graduate work and my career working with aquatic animals. During my time at NSAC, I was the founder of the NSAC Aquaculture Club.”

Since leaving NSAC after my MSc degree, I have been conducting fish nutrition research to benefit the aquaculture industry. Our research helps develop new diet formulations for fish, improve upon existing diets, make aquafeeds more economical and ecologically sustainable and to use nutrition to boost the immune response to fight stress and disease.  Since my departure from NSAC, I have had the opportunity to publish 13 scientific journal papers and 30 short-papers, conference abstracts, technical reports and magazine articles in the field of applied fish nutrition and I am currently on the ‘Ask the Experts’ panel at Aquafeed.com .”

Current position:

Research Technologist, National Research Council, Institute for Marine Biosciences, Halifax, NS

“The Nova Scotia Agricultural College Aquaculture Program provided me with the educational foundations to become a strong researcher and possess a unique skill set among my peers.” Adam Cook, Class of 2000, 20003

Adam Cook, Class of 2000, 2003

“Throughout my four year degree program I took courses not only pertaining to my direct interests in fish culture but also had the opportunity to learn about the interrelations between fish and their environment.  Following completion of my Master’s degree I obtained a Biologist Position with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.  I moved on to Dalhousie University for my PhD studies which again use the lab-based and applied ecology skills I gained at the Nova Scotia Agricultural College.”

Jillian (Tozer) Overmars, Class of 2005

NSAC’s B.Sc. (Agr.) Aquaculture program has provided me with the skills and knowledge that I now use in my professional career as a hatchery technician with the NS Dept. of Fisheries and Aquaculture.  My time at NSAC will always be remembered as one of the best experiences of my life.”

“Looking back, my decision to attend NSAC was a very wise one.  It provided me with the valuable hands-on experience I needed for my aquaculture degree and trained me for a position in my field.  I would highly recommend the aquaculture program at the NSAC.” Jillian Westcott, Class of 2001

Jillian Westcott, Class of 2001

“My interests in fish led me to the aquaculture program at the Nova Scotia Agricultural College in the fall of 1999.  The small class sizes, wide range of courses offered, hands-on lab work, and the state-of-the-art wet lab facilities were all attractive features of the program.

Since my days at NSAC, I have completed a PhD dissertation addressing sea lice in Atlantic salmon.  I collected sea lice from salmon farms over a three year period in an effort to develop tools to monitor for changes in sea lice sensitivity towards the main drug being used for sea lice control by the industry.”

Wenjie Zheng, Class of 2010

“Thanks to NSAC, especially the wonderful professors and lab instructors in our Aquaculture program, I have learned how to do my job professionally. We never simply studied the book; we studied lectures, went on field trips and had fun together. This is very important - the real world doesn’t exist in a book.

I took aquaculture because I love the water. So guys, get your hands wet and enjoy our Aquaculture program.”

Sean Neary, Class of 2000

“The knowledge and experience I gained while studying at the NSAC has opened the door to career opportunities in both the freshwater and marine fisheries.   Currently I am the Supervisor of the Margaree Fish Hatchery with the Nova Scotia Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture.  I am responsible for raising Atlantic salmon and brook trout for conservation and enhancement of these stocks.  Since leaving the NSAC I have worked in the marine and freshwater biology fields which led to my current position with the Margaree Fish Hatchery. 

Song Lin, Class of 2008

“As an international student, I was very lucky to choose the NSAC Aquaculture program to learn all the skills I wanted.  All of the professors and lab instructors in our program are very pleasant and happy to help any international students.  For example, they always gave me help in dealing with the language difficulty.  Moreover, we have an aquaculture facility  that gives us the important experience and skills valuable in choosing a career.  I would like to introduce our program to my Chinese schoolmates (at Fujian Agricultural and Forestry University) who will come to NSAC on an exchange for their last two years in their university program.  I sincerely hope more Chinese students will join us since Aquaculture is an excellent program at NSAC..

Currently, I am completing a Master’s program at the University of New Brunswick studying the ability to do sex-reversal among Atlantic cod.”