He took his D.Sc in 1927, for his research into oysters, and then moved to Cambridge in 1927 as a Balfour student, where he was invited to join and lead the Great Barrier Reef Expedition of 1928-1929. Yonge, his wife and his colleagues in the expedition spent a year off the coast of Queensland, studying Australia's Great Barrier Reef, in particular Low Isles Reef.
In 1927, he earned his D.Sc in oyster research; subsequently, he became a Balfour student at Cambridge. He was invited to lead the Great Barrier Reef Expedition from 1928 to 1929. Yonge and expedition members spent a year near Queensland's coast, studying Australia's Great Barrier Reef, with emphasis on Low Isles Reef.