careers in forestry

[desertmonk]

My father and Grandmother are both convinced that going to school for forestry would be a mistake, because I would be giving up a a well paying union job in an unrelated field to pursue it.  I am at the community college until 2009, then to SIU-Carbondale for two years.  I think I may double major in Forestry and Business, or explore other options.  What can I look forward to as far as job markets and competition from other grads?  I think between the good grades I receive, excellent work record over several years in a real job, and having no problem moving cross country if needed, I should be able to find something rewarding which has decent wages and benefits.  What does it look like out there?

[Tom]

Desertmonk,
If you take the business courses seriously, you will have something that will pull the fat out of the fire all of your life. You'll get some info about Forestry Degrees, I'm sure, but I have this to offer.  Take a path where you will be happy.  There are a lot of unhappy rich people out there.

Schools have a front and back door.  Both are open.  There is nothing that limits you one pass through.  If you have the smarts, the apptitude and the time, you can earn a lot of sheepskins.

Lastly, it is my opinion that, It's sad when a man's life goal is the Union.  You are not only working for another man, punching someone else's clock but have a second layer to satisfy as well.  It gives the term laborer an image of not being very self-sufficient and more like a welfare state.

I know, Unions have been necessary.  Just keep in mind that, regardless of who you are working for, you are working for yourself.

[brdmkr]

I'll chime in here.  I don't have a degree in forestry, but I do have one in wildlife management.  The fields are very related.  The market for those with a BS degree is not great, but there are jobs to be had.  A Master's degree really opens many more doors.  The pay is decent, and though most won't say this, in some cases it can be very good.  However, what Tom says is great advice.  Do what  you love; and you won't have to 'work' nearly as hard.

[WDH]

You only get to go around once, Desertmonk.  Follow your dreams.  If you really want to be a forester, go for it.  It will all work out ;).

[Dale Hatfield]

Find something  that you would do for free. Then  talk somebody into paying ya to do it.
I teach at forestry school in Ohio. Tree care /Timber Harvesting we run a full logging/ tree care operation. You would be amazed at how many students we get from the very large O State. That say  I learned about it/read about it. Now  teach me how.  The options to work in forestry are very wide. You can live in  Major City or the sticks with this kind of training.  Get in some wildlife classes as well.In the short you manage  wildlife by the type of  cover that a Forest provides. So if you understand  what  game and non game species need to thrive. You as a forester can provide the correct  cover.. Or you can dive head long into the science, the bugs and the disease of the tree. Many paths will be open and the great thing is you dont ever have to take one.
Dale

[Phorester]

My mother tried to talk me out of a career in forestry, saying that I wouldn't earn much money.  She was right.  But I have thoroughly enjoyed my 30+ year career. 

One advantage to my job as a State Service Forester is that I am more of a generalist; I get to do about every *DanG field forestry job there is.  I do forest management plans, mark timber, plant trees, help on research projects, fight fire, do controlled burns, drive a 4wd drive pickup set up as a fire fighting unit, Insect and disease evaluations in yard trees, operate ATV's and bulldozers, write news articles, get interviewed by the press, teach both forest management and fire control courses, prepare fire cases for court and then go to court, do both pure pine and pure hardwood management, Christmas tree management, etc., etc.  I think the best part of my job is twofold;  I get to work in the woods, and I get to educate everyone from elementary students to adults on forestry.  I get to destroy all the myths about forestry and our environment put forth by the so-called "environmental" organizations.  (Come to think of it, that's the easy part of my job since they don't know their butt from a hole in the ground about the environment).

But you can also turn a basic education in forestry into about any other field you can think of.  If you decide you want to be a lawyer, you can be an environmental lawyer, if you want to go into computers, write programs for forestry or forest fire applications, use your business major to work in a forest products industry.  An interest in engeeering can translate into designing better logging equipment, fire fighting equipment, etc.  If you want to be a teacher, become a biology teacher, a college forestry professor, etc.  If scientific research is your bag, get into forest research.  Interested in bugs?  Get a degree in forest entomology.  Want to get into journalism?  Become an envorinmental writer.  A basic interest in forestry can prepare you for many different career paths if you eventually decide that a tradional forestry career is not what you want , but want one that is built on forestry knowledge.

As has been said, get paid for what you want to do in your life.  There's more important things than money.  But unless you want a rich lifestyle, in a forestry career you can indeed make more than enough to provide a comfortable living and raise a family, while contributing to the improvement of the environment and society. 

What more can you ask for in a career?

[Dodgy Loner]

Well said, Phorester.  If I ever start to doubt my career choice, I'll just look you up to remind me why I chose forestry. 

[WDH]

Well said, Phorester.  If I ever start to doubt my career choice, I'll just look you up to remind me why I chose forestry. 

Me too, Phorester.  That was so well said, it made me want to do it all over again :D.

[Tillaway]

Phorester pretty much hit the nail on the head.  His job is the same as our stewardship foresters.  Mine is dedicated to timber sale contract administration of about 60 million board feet for the district every year.  I am in charge of road maintenance, some construction, logging, silviculture, fire, slash disposal, commercial and personal wood permits, salvage sales, help with planning, and logging engineering, (we cable log primarily) as well as any other odd project that comes along.

[Phorester]

"If I ever start to doubt my career choice, I'll just look you up to remind me why I chose forestry."

Hopefully, you'll find me somewhere in the woods.  Or maybe on the handle end of a fishing pole.

[Wudman]

My opinion.....Do what you want to do.  You are the one that has to get up every morning and go to work.  If it is a job that you do not like, you will be miserable.  I once worked a job that owned me.  I was up until midnight most nights, trying to finish the day's work.  The phone would start ringing the next morning at 5 a.m.  I was miserable.  The only time I was at peace, was when I was asleep.  Another door opened and I moved on.

I've been a forester for 18 years.  The thing I love about my typical day, is that there is no typical day.  Currently, I manage a 60,000 acre tree farm in south central Virginia.  This work ranges from timber sales, to logging supervision, to silvicuture, to public relations.  I go where the day leads.  I work alone most of the time.  To me, that is enjoyable.

I make a decent living.  Better than most in these parts.  The work I do is enjoyable.  I have a B.S. in Forestry.  If I was to do it over, knowing what I do now, I would have added a degree in wildlife managment.  I may just do that yet.  As far as job availability, there is ample work on the east coast.  We've had some job openings for entry level foresters that we've had a difficult time filling.  I know that VA Tech's graduating senior forestry class all had jobs lined up prior to graduation. 

Contact a forester in your area.  Ride along with him / her for a few days.  Enjoy your life.

Wudman 


 

[BCCrouch]

Desertmonk,

Before you commit yourself to a natural resources career, do some research first.  The degree mills are churning out far more people than can be accommodated by the federal and state agencies and even those jobs are often in places most people in their 20s and 30s are leaving for better prospects elsewhere.  If you can set up an internship that'll lead to a job with an employer of your choice in a place that has what you're looking for socially, then natural resources might be worth considering.    If not, then I'd stick with your ubiquitous Business Administration degree and leave natural resources as a dedicated hobby.

The natural resouce sector of the economy is NOT a high-growth Mecca that'll allow you to move where and when you find it convenient.  If you're one of the fortunate ones who do find stable employment with a solid compensation package, you'll likely be in that position for quite some time.  If your spouse has to relocate because of job loss or climbing the career ladder, it might be a tough task for you to find similar employment in another area.  Caveat emptor...

I'd genuinely appreciate it if Michigan State University instituted a survey of all of its College of Natural Resources graduates at the 3-year and 10-year post-graduation points.  From what I've read and heard, a disturbingly large percentage of our people are no longer employed in natural resource management a decade after they graduate.  Enrollment in the Forestry Department at MSU is declining according to what Dr. Don Dickmann told me at the 2006 Fall MSAF conference and you can bet the rest of the College of Natural Resources is experiencing the same trend.  I'm sure that Michigan in not alone in this, either.

Do your homework, Desertmonk, BEFORE you wed yourself to the idea of a natural resources career.

[Phorester]

Good points to consider.

But in the last 5 years at least 50% of the recent graduates we hired have left us to for forestry jobs in other states, both government and private industry.

So I'm thinking that maybe now is a good time to have a degree in forestry or a related natural resources field. 

[BCCrouch]

If half of your young people are telling your state agency to pike it, that says plenty about their compensation package, advancement opportunities, and/or job satisfaction levels.

You're an established forester within your agency and ought to have a good feel for the situation, so what gives?

[Riles]

You certainly need to be willing to move. I committed to this location before I went to Forestry school. If I had stayed in Louisiana, getting a job would have been simple, both because of openings and contacts. But I'm here now and openings are scarce and contacts scarcer. I applied for a state job opening 4 miles from the house. I had a 3.9 GPA and veteran's preference and couldn't get an entry level job.

I'm considering spraying chemicals for a tree service company, they're looking for people with tree id skills.

[Ron Scott]

Ditto on the willingness to move. Leave yourself a wide range of employment opportunities, especially if you hope to be employed as a forester by the State of Federal government.

I've seen many young foresters loose opportunities by wanting to stay "in place".

[Jeff]

I also think that a "can-do" attitude goes a long way at being able to meet a goal or succeed where others fail only because they have a defeatest attitude.

[BCCrouch]

If half of your young people are telling your state agency to pike it, that says plenty about their compensation package, advancement opportunities, and/or job satisfaction levels.

You're an established forester within your agency and ought to have a good feel for the situation, so what gives?

Are you still lurking out there, Phorester and Desertmonk?

[Phorester]

Yep, still here..., just not here for awhile.....

Your thinking is definitely right, BCCROUCH, as to why they are leaving us.  That could be it.  But I don't know if they're leaving us because they think our Agency is so bad that they want to leave irregardless, or because other employers are offering more.  If you 've got a great job at one salary and level of benefits, but see another great job at a higher salary or better benefits....  And of course the grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence.  We have had a couple of people leave us then come back a few years later.  That's rare, though.

But my point was that the young ones leaving us are going to other entry level forestry jobs, and DESERTMONK was asking about employment potential. 

[Tillaway]

Employment potential... we are hiring.  Recruiting almost constantly since we are getting allot of retirements, increasing our harvest, and paying well below industry and other states  forest agencies.  Most new hires here stay just until they get enough experience to land higher paying jobs.  My pay is 15% lower than entry level with industry.  Entry level here is almost exactly 2/3rds of entry level in industry.  A "wall to wall" union contract seems to be the problem.

[SwampDonkey]

Consultants, at least in Northern BC, were paying less than government when I was there. But, they were having almost as high a turnover in government entry level jobs as with consultants. Some consultants were paying high school graduates almost as much as Foresters and Techs and unless you had an RPF, they made no distinction between Forester and Tech as far as wages. If there isn't going to be a distinction, then why take a 5 year forestry program? Enrollment in Forestry Schools is way down nation-wide, and besides the down swing in the industry, I suspect wages and distinction are a big factor.

[JoeZ]

*******    I do forest management plans, mark timber*******    do both pure pine and pure hardwood management*********

As a forestry consultant- I can think of a lot of reasons why state service foresters shouldn't be doing field work that could be done by consultants.

Joe

[WDH]

State some of those reasons, please. 

[tonich]

I’m eager to hear that ones too.  :P

[JoeZ]

State some of those reasons, please. 

You can't get free plumbing, dental, or any other free work from the state- so why "free" forestry, which of course isn't "free".

Joe