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Experts say getting a jump on developing skills in aquaculture is easy,
since there are many opportunities for exploration in this field.
"First, read as many books as you can get, and experiment a little bit,"
says aquaculturist Karl Dickob. He owns a fish farm.
"It doesn't hurt to get an aquatic biologist degree," says Jennie Koolstra.
She and her husband own a fish farm in Colorado.
"A lot of [aquaculturists] have one," Koolstra adds. "My husband doesn't
have one. He's learned by trial and error, but it wouldn't hurt."
College and university programs in aquaculture cover topics such as marine
biology, hydrology, and hatchery management and maintenance.
What can young people do to see if fish farming is for them? "See if they
can get an internship or volunteer for a summer," says Koolstra. "We usually
hire a college kid for summer help, because that's when we're trucking fish
and sorting fish and all those sorts of things. That's when we're busiest."
A community college student is currently interning at Koolstra's fish
farm.
"We've tried to give him experience doing lots of things," says Koolstra.
"We've been loading fish, and he's been cleaning and feeding. It sounds like
it's going to be really exciting but it's like all your basic farming -- it's
a lot of cleaning and feeding and physical labor."
Jumping head first into the industry like this is an option for young people
interested in a career in aquaculture. Since aquaculture can be very labor-intensive,
many employees are needed for entry-level positions.
See if there are workshops or seminars in your area. Many associations
organize these. And community colleges often offer evening or weekend workshops
about fish farming.
"My association, we're going to hold seminars at my farm, so people get
a hands-on, practical idea of what it's all about," says Karl Dickob. He's
president of an aquaculture association. Without formal education, you are
more likely to remain on the ground floor of the aquaculture industry. At
the same time, some fish farmers say you can learn everything you need to
simply by doing.
"Everything is a learning process," says Dickob. "If somebody jumps in
big, he can lose big. But if you start small and grow with experience, then
you should have no problem.
"He (or she) should be outdoors minded," Dickob adds. "He (or she) doesn't
have to have a college degree or university degree. He (or she) only has to
be adaptable to circumstances and learn. Nature is very basic. It's not like
the computer world where they have every five minutes a new system."