Master of Science in Maritime Archaeology and Conservation

The MS program is a professional degree designed to prepare students for employment in maritime museums, cultural resource management firms, (including companies working with the offshore oil industry), and federal, state, or similar government agencies.

The curriculum is designed to allow students to complete the MS in Maritime Archaeology and Conservation in a two-year framework. All students are required to take five core courses, as well as a wide variety of elective courses. All students are required to write a thesis in order to complete the degree. A thesis-based graduate degree is essential for many employment opportunities, and is also a prerequisite for being listed on the Register of Professional Archaeologists (RPA).  

Students in the MS program benefit from the research opportunities and internships available through Texas A&M University’s Center for Maritime Archaeology and Conservation (CMAC) and the university-affiliated Institute of Nautical Archaeology (INA). The program is open to a limited number of students, selected on a competitive basis. In addition to required coursework, all MS students must have competence in at least one foreign language used in research. This language should be one with significant scientific literature of relevance to the student’s research areas (e.g. French, German, Spanish, and Russian) or be a language the student will use in his or her field research.

Steps to Fulfill a Masters Program