• Group of students wearing bright colors and galoshes walking away from the ocean.
  • two students in the lab
  • Students in the ocean doing research with one student in the foreground
  • student in the lab overlooking a tank
  • Students leaning over a water tank with fish in it
  • Students collecting water samples at the beach/river
  • Students studying measurements at the ocean - landscape photo with beautiful background
  • three students on a boat handling a large starfish or squid
  • Students studying at the beach with their class

Cal Poly Humboldt is located on the Northern California Coast with immediate access to coastal environments such as bays, lagoons, rivers, rocky intertidal shorelines and deep water environments of continental shelves, slopes and canyons. These characteristics create incredible opportunities for our faculty and students to study the marine environment.

Affiliated Humboldt Faculty and Researchers


Jeff Abell
Helen Mulligan
Frank Shaughnessy
Danny O'Shea
Andrew Kinzinger
Mark Henderson
Matt Hurst
Paul Bourdeau
Brian Tissot
Joe Tyburczy
Christine Cass
Rick Zechman bio photo
David Hankin
Andre Buchheister
Tim Mulligan
Rafael Cuevas Uribe holding a fish
Laurie Richmond
Dawn Goley
Sean Craig
Dan Barton

Meet our faculty researchers and discover what we are currently researching in the marine environment.

Students interested in Marine Sciences at Humboldt have the benefit of small class sizes and the diverse expertise of over two dozen marine science faculty. Humboldt has a long-standing history of supporting excellence in the sciences and in the Marine Sciences in particular. The faculty are committed to fostering the independence of their students, challenging them in their independent research, and supporting them to accomplish their personal goals.

The University has made the commitment to provide for state-of-the-art classrooms and laboratories, its own Marine Lab, and its own Research Vessel, the Coral Sea. Along with our pristine natural environment, Humboldt has all the important ingredients for exceptional student achievement that makes our graduates highly sought after for positions in governmental agencies, graduate schools and in the private sector.

Graduate Programs

Cal Poly Humboldt also offers several marine science related opportunities at the graduate level.

Find out more »

Humboldt Marine Sciences on the Science & the Environment Channel

HSU Marine Sciences