STUDY OF SHORTAGE IN THE NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS WITH POST- BACCALAUREATE DEGREES IN SUBJECTS RELATED TO FISHERY SCIENCE.

SEC. 217. STUDY OF SHORTAGE IN THE NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS WITH POST- BACCALAUREATE DEGREES IN SUBJECTS RELATED TO FISHERY SCIENCE.(a) In General.—The Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of Education shall collaborate to conduct a study of—(1) whether there is a shortage in the number of individuals with post-baccalaureate degrees in subjects related to fishery science, including fishery oceanography, fishery ecology, and fishery anthropology, who have the ability to conduct high quality scientific research in fishery stock assessment, fishery population dynamics, and related fields, for government, non-profit, and private sector entities;(2) what Federal programs are available to help facilitate the education of students hoping to pursue these degrees; and(3) what institutions of higher education, the private sector, and the Congress could do to try to increase the number of individuals with such post-baccalaureate degrees.(b) Report.—Not later than 8 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretaries of Commerce and Education shall transmit a report to each committee of Congress with jurisdiction over the programs referred to in subsection (a), detailing the findings and recommendations of the study under this section.