What does it take to get into wild life conservation? What education and experience?
My girlfriend is having a hard time figuring out what she needs to take to get into wild life conservation. She is currently a Biology Major and is trying to find out if she will need a B.S, M.S. or a P.h.d. to get into the field.
She must have a lot of time to train herself into becoming wildlife conservationist before going to it. As for me, she will need M.S. (Master of Science) to get to that field. But the best of all tips is to train herself into becoming wildlife conservationist and study hard.
I got into this field with a Bachelor of Science degree and LOTS of experience. After graduating, I did lots of seasonal jobs with government agencies (Fish and Wildlife Service), universities, etc. to beef up my resume. While in school, she should take a quarter off each year to get some hands on experience doing volunteer, internships or seasonal work. This will up her chances of getting full time permanent work. Another good place to look for work is with environmental consultant firms..they are always looking for biologists.
good to hear that, qualification is one criteria but what matters most is your concern for it…
Birdgirl is right – I too am in the green collar field, and have found that the experience is at least as important as the education. Suggest to your girlfriend that she might want to try getting an internship or other work in the area that she is interested in. There are also numerous groups out there looking for volunteers, and in this field volunteering counts, and looks really good on the resume.
I’m in grad school, so don’t knock it as a career development option, but also don’t recommend doing it for the sake of doing it. If your girlfriend really knows what she’d like to focus on, then sometimes getting a masters (there are also MES – Masters of Environmental Studies/Science – depending on the school – degrees out there, which might be better than an MS).
Another option, depending on the specific role your girlfriend is interested in is to get an RPBio (Registered Professional Biologist) or a ‘Certified Ecologist’ qualification. This type of designation is not always necessary, but is handy for those who want to ‘stick to the science side of things’.
Keep in mind that the green collar field is usually a ‘Jack/Jill of all trades’ kind of thing. For any education/experience you get it’s best to try and be as interdisciplinary as possible – don’t get so focussed on the ecological side of things (terrifically important), that you neglect things like learning how to communicate with stakeholders, learning how to work with volunteers, learning how to raise and manage funds, etc. Getting hands on experience (even as a volunteer) is a great way to learn these things and get good things to put on your resume.
Good websites to try are:
http://www.ser.org/default.asp
(The Society for Ecological Restoration International – has information about all kinds of green collar things, plus a link for looking for and posting jobs – to get ideas of qualifications needed, if nothing else).
http://www.esa.org/
(The Ecological Society of America – which has info. about becoming a certified ecologist, as well as similar content as the one above).
Both have chapters for students, as well as by interests/region – joining isn’t that expensive, but allows access to newsletters etc. that help you to keep current about what is going on in the field (literally and figuratively).
Good luck