Launch of short marine energy courses set for 2025

The Atlantic Marine Energy Center (AMEC), together with other National Marine Energy Centers, with support from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO), and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) is launching a series of short courses in marine energy.

The courses, beginning in the summer of 2025, will be hosted across AMEC-affiliated universities, including the University of New Hampshire (UNH), Coastal Studies Institute, Lehigh University, and Stony Brook University, AMEC noted.

The first one is a week-long course on marine energy, “Introduction to Marine Energy,” which is scheduled to take place at UNH from August 3-9, 2025. This week-long, fully funded program is designed to provide advanced undergraduate and early graduate students with foundational insights into marine energy technologies and industry applications.

According to AMEC, this fully funded program includes lectures, lab demonstrations, and field activities at the Chase Ocean Engineering Lab and Shoals Marine Laboratory. 

Topics covered range from tidal and wave energy technologies to energy policy, ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC), economics, environmental considerations, and many more. Participants will also have the opportunity to interact with industry professionals and expand their networks, AMEC noted.

Key learning outcomes include understanding the role of marine energy in the global energy transition, gaining insights into environmental and regulatory challenges, and acquiring hands-on knowledge of energy systems.

The course is open to U.S.-based advanced undergraduate students and beginning graduate students from all academic disciplines. Selected candidates will receive full board, lodging, and travel expenses.

Applications are due by January 10, 2025, with recommendations accepted until January 24. Notification of acceptance will be provided by February 10, 2025. 

AMEC is among the organizations that supported the Marine Energy Technologies Acceleration Act, which seeks a $1 billion investment to propel marine energy technologies toward commercialization. The legislation was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in August 2024.