Aquaculture & Fisheries
Fish and shellfish farming, aquatic animal health and fisheries science.
Aquaculture research covers the farming of fish, crustaceans and mollusks: nutrition and feed formulation, growth, reproduction, water quality and the prevention and treatment of diseases in aquatic animals.
Fisheries science studies wild fish populations and their ecology as a basis for sustainable catch levels. A recurring theme across both is replacing fishmeal and fish oil in aquafeeds with alternative ingredients.
Studying aquaculture & fisheries
Degree programs in this subject often run under these names:
What you typically learn
- Fish and shellfish biology
- Aquaculture systems: ponds, cages, recirculating systems
- Fish nutrition and feed
- Aquatic animal health
- Fisheries management and stock assessment
- Water quality and aquatic ecology
Where graduates typically work
- Fish and shellfish farms
- Aquafeed companies
- Fisheries management authorities
- Aquatic animal health services
- Research institutes and conservation organizations
Curricula differ by country and institution - the program pages linked below have the details.
Where to study aquaculture & fisheries
27 programs in 17 countries. See all 27 programs
Where research is heading
Typical research questions
- Which alternative ingredients can replace fishmeal and fish oil in aquafeeds?
- How can disease outbreaks in fish and shrimp farms be prevented?
- How do fish populations respond to fishing pressure and warming waters?
- How can shellfish farming be sited and managed sustainably?
Publications per year
Papers whose main topic belongs to this field, 2010–2025.
Research fronts: fastest-growing topics
Papers 2024–2025 compared with 2021–2022, topics with at least 500 recent papers.
| Topic | 2021–2022 | 2024–2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fisheries and Aquaculture Studies[object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] | 5,763 | 7,060 | +23% |
| Aquaculture Nutrition and Growth[object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] | 10,361 | 12,679 | +22% |
| Aquaculture disease management and microbiota[object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] | 8,916 | 10,544 | +18% |
| Marine Bivalve and Aquaculture Studies[object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] | 2,979 | 3,272 | +10% |
| Fish Biology and Ecology Studies[object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] | 24,808 | 15,306 | −38% |
Largest topics
By number of papers 2024–2025.
- Fish Biology and Ecology Studies[object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] 15,306
- Aquaculture Nutrition and Growth[object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] 12,679
- Aquaculture disease management and microbiota[object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] 10,544
- Fisheries and Aquaculture Studies[object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] 7,060
- Marine Bivalve and Aquaculture Studies[object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] · [object Object] 3,272
Highly cited recent papers
Most-cited articles and reviews published 2024–2025. Citation counts favor reviews and papers published early in the window.
- Substitution of fishmeal: Highlights of potential plant protein sources for aquaculture sustainability
- Alternative protein sources in aquafeed: Current scenario and future perspectives
- Phylogenetic Classification of Living and Fossil Ray-Finned Fishes (Actinopterygii)
- A review of the global use of fishmeal and fish oil and the Fish In:Fish Out metric
- Biofloc Technology (BFT) in Aquaculture: What Goes Right, What Goes Wrong? A Scientific‐Based Snapshot
- Fermentation in aquafeed processing: Achieving sustainability in feeds for global aquaculture production
All study programs in aquaculture & fisheries
- Agriculture (BSc) Bachelor Dalhousie University · Canada Full-time · Taught in English · Starts September and January
- 水产养殖学 (Aquaculture Science), Yantai Institute Bachelor China Agricultural University · China Taught in Chinese
- 水产养殖学 (Aquaculture) Bachelor Huazhong Agricultural University · China Usually taught in Chinese
- 水产养殖学 (Aquaculture) Bachelor Nanjing Agricultural University · China Usually taught in Chinese
- Bachelor of Fisheries Science (B.F.Sc.) Bachelor Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University · India 4 years
- B.F.Sc. (Bachelor of Fisheries Science) Bachelor Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology · India
- Akuakultur (Aquaculture) Bachelor Universitas Gadjah Mada · Indonesia
- 海洋水産学科 (Department of Aquatic Bioscience and Fisheries) Bachelor Tokyo University of Agriculture · Japan Usually taught in Japanese
- Bachelor of Agriculture (Aquaculture) Bachelor Universiti Putra Malaysia · Malaysia
- Faculty of Agriculture undergraduate programmes Bachelor Universiti Putra Malaysia · Malaysia
- Bachelor of Science in Fisheries (B.Sc. Fisheries) Bachelor Agriculture and Forestry University · Nepal
- Pesquería (Fisheries Engineering) Bachelor Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina · Peru
- Licence Aquaculture (AQUA) (Bachelor in Aquaculture) Bachelor Université Gaston Berger · Senegal Program document (PDF)
- Su Ürünleri Mühendisliği (Fisheries and Aquaculture Engineering) Bachelor Ankara University · Turkey 4 years
- Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Aquatic Sciences – Fisheries and Aquaculture Option Bachelor Auburn University · United States Taught in English
- Aquaculture Bachelor Can Tho University · Vietnam Usually taught in Vietnamese
- Aquaculture Farming Bachelor Vietnam National University of Agriculture · Vietnam Usually taught in Vietnamese
- Bachelor of Agricultural Sciences (Animal Science) Bachelor University of Zambia · Zambia 5 years · Full-time
- Shkenca Zooteknike dhe Akuakulturë (Animal Science and Aquaculture) Master Agricultural University of Tirana · Albania Full-time · Usually taught in Albanian
- Fish Biology, Fisheries and Aquaculture Master Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin · Germany Full-time
- Master of Fisheries Science (M.F.Sc.) Master Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University · India 2 years
- M.F.Sc. Aquaculture Master Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology · India
- Corso di laurea magistrale in Scienze zootecniche Master University of Perugia · Italy Full-time · Usually taught in Italian
- M.Sc. Fisheries (Aquaculture) Master Agriculture and Forestry University · Nepal
- Aquaculture (MSc) Master Norwegian University of Life Sciences · Norway 2 years · Full-time · Taught in English
- Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Aquatic Sciences (MAq, MS) Master Auburn University · United States Taught in English
- Aquaculture Master Can Tho University · Vietnam Usually taught in Vietnamese