Aquarist Career Guide,
Salary, Licence & Jobs 2026

An aquarist provides the daily care of aquatic animals at an aquarium or aquatic exhibit. Core duties include preparing and delivering species-specific diets, feeding fish, invertebrates and other marine life, maintaining water quality through testing and adjusting salinity, pH, ammonia and oxygen, and operating life-support and filtration systems. Aquarists frequently dive in exhibits and holding tanks to clean, feed and inspect animals, so dive certification is central to the job. They monitor animal health and behavior, assist veterinary staff with treatments, keep detailed records, and support breeding, rescue and conservation programs. Many specialize in a group such as sharks, corals, jellies or marine mammals. BLS counts the role within Animal Caretakers (SOC 39-2021), a broad code that also includes pet and kennel care, so aquarium-specific figures sit within a much larger group.

The BLS-typical minimum is a high-school diploma, but competitive aquarium positions usually expect a bachelor's degree in marine biology, zoology, biology or a related field. A distinctive requirement is dive certification — often advanced, rescue or scientific diver — because aquarists routinely dive to maintain exhibits and tend animals. Hands-on experience is essential and comes from aquarium internships, volunteering, and fish and invertebrate husbandry, where you learn water chemistry, filtration and life-support systems, aquatic diets and disease management. Entry is highly competitive, so many start as interns, volunteers or seasonal aquarist aides before landing a permanent role. From there you specialize in a taxon and advance through senior and lead aquarist positions toward collection-manager and curator-of-fishes roles.

You set your career intent, target role, location, salary, credentials, and timeline, in 3 minutes. Our recruiters benchmark your pay against BLS data and live employer requirements, then bring matching permanent job opportunities directly to you. No applications. No job boards. We verify your credentials so employers see a complete, credible profile. After placement, we pay your licence renewal fees. Permanent, full-time, direct-hire only.

Technically no — BLS lists a high-school diploma as the typical minimum for animal caretakers. In practice, though, most accredited aquariums expect a bachelor's degree in marine biology, zoology or a related life science for aquarist positions, plus SCUBA or scientific dive certification, because competition is intense and the work requires solid knowledge of aquatic biology, water chemistry and life-support systems. This produces a familiar mismatch: many aquarists hold degree-level education and specialized dive credentials while earning a median around $35,360. Beyond formal education, employers heavily weigh hands-on aquatic-husbandry experience and diving ability. So while a degree is not a legal requirement, it and dive certification are practical necessities for career-track aquarium roles, and experience matters as much as the credentials.

BLS counts aquarists within Animal Caretakers (SOC 39-2021), which reports an OEWS May 2025 median of $35,360 a year, or $17.00 an hour, ranging from $27,250 at the 10th percentile to $50,060 at the 90th. Interns and aquarist aides start near the bottom, established aquarists sit around the median, and senior and lead aquarists reach the upper end, with curators of fishes — counted in a separate, better-paid code — earning more. Pay is modest relative to the degree and dive certification the field expects, and rises mainly with experience, specialization in a taxon, dive and life-support skills, and moving into lead and management roles. Large accredited aquariums in high-cost metros tend to pay more. The broad occupation grows fast, but much of that growth is in pet care rather than aquariums.

Both provide daily hands-on animal care and are counted by BLS within Animal Caretakers (SOC 39-2021), but they specialize in different collections. An aquarist cares for aquatic life — fish, invertebrates, corals and marine animals — and must manage water quality and life-support systems and typically dive in exhibits, making dive certification a defining requirement. A zookeeper cares for terrestrial and mixed collections such as mammals, birds and reptiles, focusing on enclosure husbandry, enrichment and behavioral training rather than water systems and diving. Both usually need a life-science degree and hands-on experience at accredited institutions and earn similar modest pay. The core difference is the environment and skill set: aquarists center on aquatic husbandry, water chemistry and diving, while zookeepers center on land-animal husbandry and enrichment.

For people passionate about the ocean and aquatic life, it can be a deeply rewarding career, combining animal care with diving and a role in conservation and breeding programs, in a fast-growing broad occupation. The honest trade-offs are significant: pay is modest, with a median around $35,360 even though most aquariums expect a bachelor's plus dive certification; entry is highly competitive and often starts with internships or seasonal work; and the job is physically demanding and water-based, with cold, wet conditions and safety considerations around diving. The 12.1% growth spans the whole Animal Caretakers group, much of it pet-care rather than aquariums, so aquarium openings stay competitive. Those who gain strong experience, specialize, and build dive and life-support expertise position themselves best for lead and curatorial advancement.