Alumni Profiles - Meet Marina Haynes
Hometown: Merchantville, NJ
Year of Graduation: 1994
Major: Animal Science
Campus Involvement:
I was so busy with classwork that I didn’t have time!
Current Position of Employment or Education:
Curator, Children’s Zoo, Philadelphia Zoo
Describe your best Ag experience:
I think it would have to be having to do "sheep watch" where we stayed overnight in the barn waiting for births to happen. It was a new experience for me and seeing the process first hand was amazing. Helping to rear the lambs was also a great experience.
Which Ag course was your favorite and why?
Animal Behavior. This class inspired me to pursue my graduate work in ethology. It opened up a whole new world of understanding animals which defined my career path! It is like learning a new language and when you get this new insight, your work with animals is changed in a profound way!
Tell us about your current position or program of study and what led you to that field.
I spent time as an undergrad working as a vet tech and volunteering at the Brandywine Zoo to see if it was a good fit for me. The volunteer experience at the zoo crystallized my career path. I was working with a huge variety of animals and learned how to apply my skills in animal husbandry to exotic animal collections. Additionally, I discovered my love of education with the interactions I had with Zoo visitors.
I knew then that I wanted to work in this field where I could combine animal work with education and feel like I was making a difference in the world. Where else could you work with animals and inspire people to be passionate about animals and the environment. If people don't care, animals will go extinct. I want to help inspire people to care!
How did your College of Ag experiences prepare you for your current job or post-graduate education?
All of the hands on animal husbandry work I did as an animal science major has been extremely valuable every day in my job!
What advice do you have for students interested in your field?
Volunteer, volunteer, volunteer! This is a very competitive field and the way to get you foot in the door is get experience volunteering. You meet people in the field and get to see if the job is right for you.
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