UNCW is an internationally recognized leader in coastal and marine science research and education.
Our faculty, staff and students explore topics of regional, national and international importance. With waterside facilities at Myrtle Grove and Wrightsville Beach, we have immediate access to a variety of marine ecosystems.
Marine science at UNCW spans over 50 years! Our work covers diverse fields, including oceanography, coastal and wetland studies, estuarine science, marine physiology and genetics, fisheries, aquaculture, marine biotechnology, and all aspects of marine biology, marine and atmospheric chemistry, marine geology, environmental science and physical oceanography.
And we keep expanding the breadth of our programs. In 2022, we launched the Ph.D. in Applied Coastal and Ocean Sciences degree program. We also are the first U.S. university to offer a bachelor’s degree in coastal engineering.
We also support research in specialized topics such as coastal policy, geography, economics and health and human services.
CMS advances research and teaching of the highest quality, enhancing your UNCW experience whether you are a graduate or undergraduate student in marine science. Our respected faculty support research that addresses current and future questions about the environment and the life and health of our oceans, sounds and tidal waterways.
We are recognized as a world-class site for applied marine science, especially in the areas of biotechnology and drug discovery, mariculture and living resources, and coastal monitoring and technology. Many of our researchers are developing and marketing products from the ocean, such as new pharmaceuticals.
Our state-of-the-art facilities include ample laboratory space, a shellfish research hatchery, a marine biotechnology building and an aquaculture complex. Docking space and a fleet of research vessels facilitate water-based research activities.
National Science Foundation powers multi-institutional research on seismic activity and tsunami hazards on the west coast.
UNC Wilmington faculty have been equipped with a cutting-edge instrument from the North Carolina Collaboratory and Thermo Fisher Scientific to advance research on the impact of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination on the environment and public health.
Dr. Peter Schuhmann has been appointed by the United Nations as a member of the Pool of Experts of the United Nations Regular Process for Global Reporting and Assessment of the State of the Marine Environment.
Within the depths of the lower Cape Fear and Brunswick rivers lie remnants of the region's history of rice cultivation and the enslaved West Africans and their descendants, the Gullah Geechee, who worked the fields. A team of researchers is attempting to document that history.
UNCW and the CMS hosted the Honorable Deb Haaland and Liz Klein, Director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
To better understand how sand is transported in the swash zone, the U.S. Coastal Research Program (USCRP), via the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), is funding a groundbreaking research project led by Dr. Ryan Mieras, UNCW assistant professor of coastal engineering. The nearly $1 million grant ($999,186) includes two collaborating institutions, University of Delaware and University of Texas at Austin.
Center for Marine Science
Phone: (910) 962-2408
Fax: (910) 962-2410
Monday-Friday
8 a.m. - 5 p.m.