Increasing coastal population growth and development continues to threaten ecological and environmental systems, while people face increasing risk from natural hazards in the 21st century.  Resilient development of coasts in the face of threats from storms, coastal flooding, sea-level rise, and human alteration of natural environments is an issue of paramount global importance.  These multifaceted problems demand specialists who are capable of bridging the silos between coastal science, policy development, and sustainable management.

The MCMS Ph.D. program is an interdisciplinary program that is firmly grounded in both the social and physical sciences.  The program’s emphases encompass the impacts and opportunities from the built environment and development, rigorous training in research methods and analytical procedures, and interdisciplinary approaches to research and learning—with a focus on the coastal and marine near-shore environments, where problems at the interface of the natural and built-environment are most pronounced.  Through their interdisciplinary training, MCMS graduates will have a multitude of options for employment, ranging from academic and research institutions, government, industry, consulting, to non-governmental organizations.