Introduction
In May 2001, the Oregon Coast Community College (OCCC) was awarded an Advanced Technology Education planning grant from the National Science Foundation to assess the workforce needs of public aquariums, aquaculture facilities, ornamental fish industries and interpretive centers. This assessment would establish the groundwork of an Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree program in Aquarium Technology. This two year technical program will prepare individuals for employment in aquatic animal husbandry and aquatic life support positions.
Two surveys were developed with the assistance of an industry advisory group and the Oregon State University’s Survey Research Center. One survey was developed for employers and the other for employees. The surveys sought to quantify the industry's need for skilled personnel, identify skills deemed very important by both employers and employees, and to establish employment potential for program graduates.
Methods
A mailing list of 739 supervisor/owners and 688 employees was assembled from several sources including: American Zoos and Aquariums Association (AZA) directory, industry publications, Internet directories, the National Marine Educators Association (NMEA) annual meeting directory, and personal contacts. Attempts were made to contract potential survey recipients via telephone to provide advance notice of the survey and confirm mailing addresses. Additional names and contact information were obtained or confirmed through these conversations. Messages explaining the purpose of the survey were left on voice mail if no one answered.
The survey protocol followed the guidelines recommended by Salant and Dillman in the book How to Conduct Your Own Survey. An introductory letter was mailed to each potential participant. A week later it was followed by the survey packet containing a cover letter, the survey, a postage paid return envelope, and a raffle ticket for a Gyotaku fish print. Two weeks later a reminder postcard was mailed to all non-respondents. Five weeks after the survey packet was initially mailed, all non-respondents received a second survey packet.
The survey instruments were pilot tested with a group of 106 individuals randomly selected from the mailing list. The returned pilot surveys were examined for indications of bias, ambiguity or difficulty in answering any particular question. Only minor formatting revisions were required. The pilot survey took place from August 27th through September 20th. The survey itself ran from September 17th through December 3rd. Surveys were returned to Oregon Coast Community College where they were logged in, reviewed, and forwarded to Oregon State University’s Survey Research Center for data entry. Since the changes to the final survey involved only formatting, the decision was made to combine the pilot surveys with the final version for analysis.
Response Rates
The employer survey was mailed to 739 individuals. Thirteen (13) were returned as undeliverable, one (1) was returned as deceased, thirty-nine (39) individuals declined to complete the survey primarily because they felt it did not apply to their facility or enterprise, and 297 completed surveys were returned. The adjusted return rate for employers was 43%.
The employee survey was mailed to 688 individuals. Six (6) were returned as undeliverable, three (3) individuals declined to complete the survey because they felt it did not apply to them, and 439 completed surveys were returned. The adjusted return rate for employees was 65%
The interest and response from aquariums/zoos was phenomenal. The response rate to the employer survey was 77% and the response rate to the employee survey was 82%.
Results of the survey show a demand for technically skilled workers and provide clear directions for curriculum development and delivery methods.
This report contains highlights of the survey findings. A complete report of the survey findings can be viewed on the Oregon Coast Community College web page:
www.occc.cc.or.us/aquarium
KEY FINDINGS
Employer Challenges
Employers were asked if they had experienced difficulty in hiring skilled, capable, and knowledgeable individuals during the past twelve months. Fifty-three percent (53%) responded affirmatively. The commonly missing skills and knowledge in new employees were subject content knowledge, related job experience, and technical skills.
Missing Skills and Knowledge Percent Subject Content Knowledge Related Job Experience Technical Skills Project Management Skills Oral Communications Skills Basic Science Knowledge Interpersonal Skills Computer Skills Writing Skills Basic Math Skills
Employment Opportunities
The availability of employment opportunities for graduates is a concern when developing a new educational program. This issue was addressed by gathering information on planned growth in the industry and asking employers if they would be willing to hire graduates of a two-year aquarium technology program.
Over half (53%) of the employers responding to the survey, planned to expand their staff size over the next five years. These 156 employers planned to add a total of 721 new positions, three-quarters of which will require technical aquatic animal husbandry skills.
Employers were asked if a graduate of a two-year program with the knowledge and skills they deemed as "Very Important" would be qualified to work at their facility. Overall 83% of all employers would consider a community college graduate with the essential technical skills as qualified to work at their facility. The percent willing to hire graduates of a two-year program was higher for the ornamental fish industry (94%) the aquaculture facilities (86%) and the aquariums (86%) than for the educational/interpretative centers (68%).
The Knowledge and Skills Rated as "Very Important" by Employers
| Skills and Knowledge | Aquariums (n=111) |
Educational (n=79) |
Ornamental (n=71) |
Aquaculture (n=36) |
| Daily animal care |
77%
|
42%
|
86%
|
75%
|
| Record keeping |
71%
|
48%
|
42%
|
50%
|
| Basic science |
67%
|
68%
|
45%
|
42%
|
| Animal health management |
65%
|
43%
|
79%
|
50%
|
| Knowledge of current job topics |
58%
|
58%
|
63%
|
25%
|
| Exhibit maintenance |
57%
|
32%
|
52%
|
11%
|
| Water quality management |
55%
|
34%
|
82%
|
72%
|
| Life support maintenance |
54%
|
30%
|
63%
|
50%
|
|
Public speaking
|
46%
|
61%
|
14%
|
6%
|
| Collecting and transporting |
45%
|
37%
|
68%
|
56%
|
| Basic math |
40%
|
22%
|
35%
|
42%
|
| Audience assessment |
34%
|
52%
|
31%
|
3%
|
| Report writing |
25%
|
19%
|
4%
|
6%
|
| Computer skills |
25%
|
44%
|
13%
|
17%
|
| Volunteer supervision |
23%
|
22%
|
8%
|
11%
|
| Life support design |
22%
|
18%
|
25%
|
22%
|
| Exhibit design |
19%
|
15%
|
30%
|
3%
|
| Life support fabrication |
18%
|
16%
|
25%
|
22%
|
| Classroom management |
16%
|
35%
|
4%
|
3%
|
| Exhibit fabrication |
14%
|
13%
|
21%
|
6%
|
| Project planning |
10%
|
22%
|
10%
|
14%
|
| Staff supervision |
9%
|
14%
|
13%
|
11%
|
| Formative evaluation |
9%
|
53%
|
18%
|
11%
|
| Biofact processing |
8%
|
11%
|
6%
|
6%
|
| Curriculum development |
8%
|
24%
|
6%
|
3%
|
| Research |
3%
|
16%
|
10%
|
6%
|
| Budgeting |
2%
|
6%
|
4%
|
6%
|
Income for Entry-level Staff
Employers were asked to state their typical annual full-time wage for entry-level aquatic animal husbandry and interpretative staff. The mean entry-level salary was $21,440 for aquatic animal husbandry and $21,317 for entry-level interpretative staff.
Income and Tenure of Current Employees
Employees were asked to report their annual income. The mean income for all full-time employees was $32,500. As expected, income tended to increase with years on the job.
Of interest was the fact that 51% of the employees had worked in the field for five years or less. Seventy-five percent (75%) had worked in the profession for 10 years or less. This relatively inexperienced workforce may reflect the tremendous growth in the aquatic animal husbandry industry over the past ten years. 30% of all public aquariums in the U.S. have been built since 1990. Only eleven percent (11%) had worked in the industry for more than 15 years.
Employees Comments on Education and Missing Skills
When employees were asked about what skills or knowledge they lacked at the start of their career, 313 items were submitted. In general, the missing skills or knowledge were of a technical or "hands-on" nature. The most frequently cited item was plumbing, followed by water quality/chemistry, life support systems, animal husbandry, nutrition and health management. Subjects that would be addressed in a core curriculum such as computer skills, biology, chemistry and business were also noted as lacking by employees. Click HERE for a complete list of missing skills.
Of those working at an educational/interpretive center, 93% possessed at least a Bachelor’s degree. Almost 80% of employees at zoo/aquarium, ornamental fish and aquaculture enterprises had earned at least a Bachelor’s degree. Forty-two percent of education/interpretative center employees had advanced degrees, while only 14% of their animal husbandry employees had a Master’s degree or higher.
Employee Interest in Distance Education
Eighty-two percent (82%) of the current employees completing the survey expressed an interest in taking a distance education course related to their work. The most popular topics for a distance education class were aquatic animal husbandry, fish husbandry, and water quality.
Topic Percent Interested Aquatic Animal Health Invertebrate Husbandry Fish Husbandry Water Quality Fisheries Science Elasmobranch Husbandry Science Education Methods Natural Sciences Interpretation Techniques
Both employers and employees were encouraged to submit comments with their survey. Of those completing and returning the survey, 129 participants (17%) provided comment. One commonly repeated comment was that the aquarium technology program would be useful to the aquarium and ornamental fish profession. Frequently coupled with the above statement was the recommendation that the program integrate an internship component into the curriculum.
Conclusions
Results of the survey show that employers are currently experiencing difficulty hiring workers with important technical skills, particularly in the ornamental fish businesses (65%), aquaculture facilities (56%) and aquariums (56%). Furthermore, a majority of the employer (53%) plan to expand their staffing over the next five years. These results, coupled with the fact that there are at least thirteen new aquariums in the planning stages, indicate an increasing need for workers that posses strong aquatic animal husbandry/life support skills and the ability to effectively communicate with guests and/or clients.
Results of the survey also provided clear directions for curriculum development and delivery methods. Employers and employees were in agreement on the essential technical skills that would ensure high quality health and husbandry care for aquatic animals, particularly fishes and invertebrates. Both groups noted the importance of "hands-on" training experiences such as internships.
Oregon Coast Community College plans to proceed with the development of a two-year degree program to train individuals for employment in these enterprises. This effort is being supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation. During 2002 and early 2003 the curriculum will be developed. In fall, 2003 we plan to accept the first class of students. Internships will play an integral role in the program. If your facility has an interest in hosting OCCC interns, please contact us at any of the email addresses below.
Need More Information
For additional information regarding the survey visit the Oregon Coast Community College web page at www.occc.cc.or.us/aquarium. For program information contact Jane Hodgkins at 541-574-7124 or jhodgkins@occc.cc.or.us, Bruce Koike at 541-574-6104 or koikster@hotmail.com, or Dr. Tim Miller-Morgan at 541-574-9446 or tjmm@teleport.net.
Acknowledgements
We would like to acknowledge the National Science Foundation, the Oregon Coast Community College Foundation, and the Lincoln County Economic Development Alliance for funding this study, the Oregon State University’s Survey Research Center for their assistance with survey design and data entry, the OCCC Advisory Committee members for their input, and finally those professionals who took the time to complete and return the survey.