flyfishpj

I am sorry if this is an odd question, but I feel it fits best here, and you all will have some good input. I have decided, as a high school senior, that I need to do something that I love. I think wildlife biology would be awesome. On that note, which school do you think would be better to study wildlife biology/management at? Paul Smith's College in upstate New York or Lake Superior State University in Michigan? Thanks ya'll!

TreednNC

good luck....i persued that field and was sorely disapointed in lack of jobs and the money or lack thereof that goes with it. Prepare to do TONS of volunteer work, part time jobs and internships, more than likely, far far away from home, with something you dont care about like a red footed short tailed tit-mouse or something lol

bryant1

I agree with TreednNC. When i changed my major, i was torned between wildlife biology and environmental science.Both are lower-paying fields compared tomy former major of environmental engineering, and to make a decent salarywith a wildlife biology degree you will need an advanced degree from a good school. I wish i had someone to tell me thehonest truth when i was changing my major, but luckily i had enough engineering skillsand connections to land a good job.Contemplate about it for awhile, beforeyou make a knee-jerk decision like i did

sjsfire

Southern Illinois University in Carbondale has excellent wildlife biology courses. I had many a coworker graduate from there. But like others have said the job market in that field is very competative. I know here in Illinois the IDNR is loosing people left and right because of budget cuts thanks to our jerk of a Gov.

Schobs

I'm not sure where you're from or how far you're willing to travel, but I'm a sophomore at University of Wisconsin Stevens Point and it is the 2nd largest college of natural resources in the nation. They've got a great wildlife bio program along w/ a bunch of other natural resource programs if you decide to do something else. As far as jobs and money are concerned, I can't say for sure you're going to be rich right out of college, but what alot of people don't realize is that the baby boomers are getting near to retirement and in the next 5-10 years or so there will be a huge opening of jobs in the DNR in WI and I'm sure in other states as well. The last stat i heard was that the average age of people working in the WI DNR is 50+, so there will be jobs in the near future. just my 0.02

Bob H in NH

I looked into wildlife management and wildlife bio when I made this choice , long time ago. Schools I came up with:
Penn State
Univ of Wyoming
Univ of Maine at Orono

My son was interested in marine bio and Penn State was on his list, due to job research he swapped out and went computer science instead. The job market is VERY tough and you will need an advanced degree.

I have an Uncle who retired several years ago from MA F&G where he spent his career. he was VERY high up the fish side of Fish &Game and he talked both myself and his son (my cousin) out of pursuiing it.

flyfishpj

Okay, well I am glad to hear all of that. It seems like you guys know what you are talking about.

vadeer

I was toldlast year that there are only 50 chief state wildlifebiologistjobs in theUS. That statementwas made to me for affect, andthe message hit me. Those being said,if you are interested, take a look at job possibilitieswithfederal government. I seewildliferelated jobs on the OPM.gov jobs web site.A career is a tough balance betweenpassion and money.

vabyrd

I just answered your other post, but here is another thought. Maybe you could look into NCDOT (department of transportation). They have huge environmental departments. Ours in Virginia is pretty big. These guys live in the woods. You wont find many come hunting season. If you love your job, you'll never "work" a day in yourlife. Best of luck.

muley699

First, wildlife Bio will require an advanced degree, masters at minumum to get a reasonable job. Second, the pay is a joke and the competition is not. Now is the time for you to consider seriously what you want to do. Look, all this talk about a job you love doesn't pay the bills. I got a BS Resource Conservation from the U of Montana, never used it, never will. Being broke will not afford you the time and money to enjoy the great outdoors. I think you would be surprised at the lack of time in the field with many of these vocations. Perhaps considerdegrees in associated outdoor vocations such as hydrology, which can be applicable in many different settings.Thirdly, if thats really what your heart is set on, I would look for a school that has research centers,testing forest, ranch/farm programs, comprehensive and diverse watershedareas, and range/multi-successional expiremental acreages. You will want to extend your class room training into the field and into as many programs as you can, if the school doesn't have these resources, you will suffer. Finally, think about the organization that you would most likely be employed by, that of course, is the government. Ask yourself honestly if you can live with a life of government work, some can, others can't.