Plotting a New Course

Whitney Wemett ’16 majored in accounting, but a study abroad experience in Australia ignited her passion for marine science. Back at Stonehill, she added a minor in environmental studies to her course load. After graduation, Wemett lined up an accounting job and had six months before she started work. “I traveled to Madagascar, volunteered as a scientific diver and did marine science research,” she says. That experience reinforced her desire to change her career path.

But pivoting to a career in marine science wasn’t an easy transition. While she worked as an accountant in Boston, Wemett also volunteered with the Surfrider Foundation and took a graduate class in marine policy at Harvard Extension School.

Since then, she’s built a career centered around preserving our oceans and wild spaces. Wemett is a U.S. Coast Guard 50 Ton Captain, has worked restoring coral reefs in the Florida Keys and as a fisheries technician, and holds PADI Divemaster and Wilderness First Responder credentials. Today she leads the Florida Keys chapter of the Surfrider Foundation as the board chair.

This past summer, Wemett worked seasonally in Alaska as a boat captain and a backcountry guide at a remote wilderness lodge. When the season ended, she returned to the Keys and is continuing her work in conservation and climate change.

While an accounting degree might not seem like the best match for a marine scientist, Wemett sees it differently. “Stonehill does a great job of preparing us for different career fields,” she says. "It made me a critical thinker and gave me the courage, skills and strength to find a different career path.”