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Science

Foresters

Manage public and private forested lands for economic, recreational, and conservation purposes. May inventory the type, amount, and location of standing timber, appraise the timber's worth, negotiate the purchase, and draw up contracts for procurement. May determine how to conserve wildlife habitats, creek beds, water quality, and soil stability, and how best to comply with environmental regulations. May devise plans for planting and growing new trees, monitor trees for healthy growth, and determine optimal harvesting schedules.

Median salary (BLS)

$76,400

10th–90th percentile (BLS)

$51k – $110k

Job outlook

+1% (about average)

AI exposure

Early-career check: graduates of the matching programs below typically earn $119,000 ten years after starting college — an early-career figure, vs. the all-experience BLS median above. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard.

Plan a path to Foresters

Qualification costsStack incomeBest cities/statesSchool ROIJob-posting fitTailored resume

Education

Typical entry: Bachelor's degree

Plan my path to this →

Typical progression

  1. Foresters Intern

    Internship

    $36,000

    ~4 mos to advance

  2. Junior Foresters

    Entry / Junior

    $50,790

    ~2 yrs to advance

  3. Foresters

    Established

    $76,400

    ~3 yrs to advance

  4. Senior Foresters

    Senior

    $93,050

Internships are a common on-ramp here — they speed up landing that first role and improve your odds, which is why the Safe and High-ceiling plans build one in.

Key skills

A typical day

  • •Monitor contract compliance and results of forestry activities to assure adherence to government regulations.
  • •Negotiate terms and conditions of agreements and contracts for forest harvesting, forest management and leasing of forest lands.
  • •Plan and implement projects for conservation of wildlife habitats and soil and water quality.
  • •Establish short- and long-term plans for management of forest lands and forest resources.
  • •Plan cutting programs and manage timber sales from harvested areas, assisting companies to achieve production goals.

Fields of study

Any field

Top colleges for Science

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Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.