Jenny Cook

My marine biology career started focused on shark ecology after I was lucky enough to travel to the Seychelles to research whale shark ecology for my Masters Thesis, studying Marine Biology at the University of Southampton. After completing my MSCi in 2011 I moved out to Australia where I studied whale shark ecology alongside working for various whale shark swim tours on the Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia. In the four and a half years I spent there I swam with hundreds of whale sharks, got my divemaster qualification, collected plankton samples, whale shark fecal samples (this is as difficult as it sounds!) and photo ID shots. I also saw the incredible diversity of wildlife the Ningaloo has to offer – humpback whales, orca, blue whales, manta rays, sunfish, dolphins, dugongs and tiger sharks, to name just a few.

I moved home in 2015 and made a total career change to work in Database Marketing for a multi-billion-dollar global company. I worked my way up the ranks to Account Director – in charge of my own team and developing multi-national data strategies and marketing strategies for household name brands. I enjoyed the deeply technical aspects of the role, growing my brilliant team and working with fantastic clients, but there was always something missing.

As a Marine Biologist at OSC I am delighted to be back in the marine sector, advancing my knowledge on marine mammals after falling in love with the marine mammals I saw back in Australia. I’m excited to be involved in the vital research the company carries out and to be working as a Marine Mammal Observer for offshore and onshore projects. It’s fantastic to be working for a company so driven in not just mitigation and protection but also the advancement of our knowledge of marine mammals as a scientific community.

In my free time I love anything in/underwater – swimming, diving, free-diving. I also love cooking, painting and travelling.