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Job outlook for environmental technicians in the United States
Environmental technician job growth summary. After extensive research, interviews, and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
The projected environmental technician job growth rate is 9% from 2018-2028.
About 3,200 new jobs for environmental technicians are projected over the next decade.
Environmental technician salaries have increased 8% for environmental technicians in the last 5 years.
There are over 5,284 environmental technicians currently employed in the United States.
There are 43,079 active environmental technician job openings in the US.
The average environmental technician salary is $39,690.
Are environmental technician jobs in demand?
Environmental technician job and salary trends over time
Environmental technician jobs over time
Environmental technician job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 5,284 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 5,249 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 5,386 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 5,035 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 5,072 | 0.00% |
Average environmental technician salary over time
Environmental technician salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $39,690 | $19.08 | +0.4% |
| 2025 | $39,518 | $19.00 | +3.2% |
| 2024 | $38,297 | $18.41 | +1.5% |
| 2023 | $37,733 | $18.14 | +2.9% |
| 2022 | $36,655 | $17.62 | +2.7% |
Environmental technician jobs by state
Most common states for environmental technicians
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska | 739,795 | 161 | 22% |
| 2 | Maine | 1,335,907 | 189 | 14% |
| 3 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 95 | 14% |
| 4 | Vermont | 623,657 | 74 | 12% |
| 5 | Connecticut | 3,588,184 | 379 | 11% |
| 6 | Iowa | 3,145,711 | 351 | 11% |
| 7 | North Dakota | 755,393 | 83 | 11% |
| 8 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 659 | 10% |
| 9 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 721 | 9% |
| 10 | Wisconsin | 5,795,483 | 518 | 9% |
| 11 | Colorado | 5,607,154 | 477 | 9% |
| 12 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 115 | 9% |
| 13 | Delaware | 961,939 | 91 | 9% |
| 14 | Wyoming | 579,315 | 50 | 9% |
| 15 | Georgia | 10,429,379 | 834 | 8% |
| 16 | Minnesota | 5,576,606 | 445 | 8% |
| 17 | Nebraska | 1,920,076 | 163 | 8% |
| 18 | West Virginia | 1,815,857 | 154 | 8% |
| 19 | Montana | 1,050,493 | 79 | 8% |
| 20 | Illinois | 12,802,023 | 889 | 7% |
Most common cities for environmental technicians
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Benicia | 8 | 28% | $51,098 |
| 2 | Lansing | 9 | 8% | $42,407 |
| 3 | Silver Spring | 6 | 8% | $46,878 |
| 4 | Midland | 3 | 7% | $42,458 |
| 5 | Pittsburg | 3 | 4% | $50,983 |
| 6 | Inglewood | 3 | 3% | $47,494 |
| 7 | Carson | 2 | 2% | $47,280 |
| 8 | Compton | 2 | 2% | $47,339 |
| 9 | Dearborn | 2 | 2% | $42,884 |
| 10 | Indianapolis | 6 | 1% | $41,765 |
| 11 | Detroit | 4 | 1% | $42,943 |
| 12 | Phoenix | 6 | 0% | $46,511 |
| 13 | Boston | 2 | 0% | $53,621 |
| 14 | Dallas | 2 | 0% | $39,046 |
Environmental Technician job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of environmental technician experts
Florida International University
North Carolina State University
Kent State University
Ohio State University
Drake University
Gonzaga University
Gannon University
University of North Alabama
Kennesaw State University
West Virginia Wesleyan College
University of Minnesota
Concordia University
Barnard College
Bard College
Auburn University-Montgomery
University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point
Washington State University
The University of Memphis
University of Puerto Rico-RP
What Environmental Technician skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Dr. Krishnaswamy Jayachandran: Natural Resources Management is a broader field. Natural Resource Conservation Service is one of the largest agencies in the USDA providing career job opportunities. US Forest Service Agency is another one to explore career opportunities. There are few things I would suggest - gain experiential and experimental skills through internships, network with professionals in the field, increase knowledge through advanced graduate education, keep open minded to learning, focus on sustainability and environmental stewardship in your work.
Frederick Cubbage
ProfessorNorth Carolina State University
Environmental/Natural Resources Management And Policy
What Environmental Technician skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Frederick Cubbage: People who either want to work outside and fulfill their passion for natural systems and environments and often are attracted to natural resources.
What general advice would you give to an Environmental Technician?
Dr. Christopher Post PhD: Start local and get an internship while an undergraduate. Any position with the federal lands agencies (parks, forests, BLM, etc.) are tough to get and you have to work your way in to that federal system. Start local with regional/county/city parks and forests and work up to the federal level. Also keep that balance between the science (the biology and earth science) and the more social science/humanities (ethics, economics, communications) material you’ve learned as undergraduate. These jobs are all about communicating complex scientific/environmental issues with the general public so that context is very important. You have to be nimble and know both areas (the science and the social science) and their overlap.
What Environmental Technician skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Dr. Christopher Post PhD: Geographic Information Science—the ability to take field data and make it visual with maps so that you and others can witness and analyze spatial relations is the most important skill set in environmental careers right now and will continue as such. Everything in nature moves—albeit sometimes slowly—and understanding those interactions is key to unfolding humanity’s impacts on the environment, and vice versa.
What will help Environmental Technicians increase their earning potential?
Man-Yau Chan: There is an increasing demand for meteorologists because the field itself is growing bigger and more sophisticated. There are now forecasting systems for all sorts of things (e.g., urban pollution forecasting, cloud-cover forecasting for solar power). Every one of those areas needs meteorologists. There are also many places that need meteorologists, especially outside of the National Weather Service! Some exciting examples include the Navy, the Army, the Air Force, utility companies, and the US Department of Agriculture! I would like to highlight my own discipline: statistical meteorology. Statistical meteorologists are increasingly in demand because (1) they are essential for creating the computer systems used to correct weather forecasting, and (2) there are more and more weather forecasting systems. However, there is an undersupply of statistical meteorologists at the moment. In other words, there are many job opportunities!
Keith Summerville
Levitt Distinguished Professor of Environmental Science, Paul and Claudia Schickler Executive Director, Jay N. Darling InstituteDrake University
Natural Resources Conservation And Research
What Environmental Technician skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Keith Summerville: 1. To anyone getting a start in this field- build your professional network as early as possible- attend volunteer work days, try going to low cost local conferences or meetings (local Audubon Societies, Iowa Prairie Network, Society for Ecological Restoration Midwest Chapter, Ducks Unlimited). The more people in the field you know, the more opportunities you will be exposed to.
Dr. Greg Gordon Professor/Chair
Professor/ChairGonzaga University
Natural Resources Conservation And Research
What Environmental Technician skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Dr. Greg Gordon Professor/Chair: Do field work as much as possible while you're young! Don't shun seasonal work or internships. There are a plethora of federal jobs right now, so it's a good time to get in with a federal agency.
What will help Environmental Technicians increase their earning potential?
Dr. Greg Gordon Professor/Chair: We find that graphical information systems (GIS) skills are in high demand. Soft skills such as ability to work as a team, develop work plans, collaborate and communicate with diverse stakeholders, communicate technical and scientific information, are, and will be very important in the near and long term future.
Liu Cao Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Environmental Science & Engr.Gannon University
Natural Resources Conservation And Research
What general advice would you give to an Environmental Technician?
Liu Cao Ph.D.: For graduates in environmental science embarking on their careers, it's essential to embrace a multidisciplinary approach and remain adaptable to the evolving landscape of environmental challenges. Prioritize gaining practical experience through internships or volunteer work to apply your theoretical knowledge in real-world contexts, enhancing your employability. Networking is also key; engage with professionals in your field through industry conferences, workshops, and professional associations to expand your opportunities and gain insights into emerging trends. Continuously refine your skills, particularly in data analysis, GIS, and sustainability practices, and consider further education or certifications to specialize in high-demand areas. Finally, stay informed about global environmental issues and technological advancements, as this will enable you to contribute innovatively to your field.
What will help Environmental Technicians increase their earning potential?
Aaron Haines Ph.D., Certified Wildlife Biologist ®: Learn to be a team player and be reliable enough to complete tasks by yourself. Make sure your online presence is one of a professional in your field. Potential employers will search you out online. Have these searches lead to the professional you. The ecology and environmental biology fields are competitive. As a growing professional in these fields, you will begin with lower salaries compared to biology majors in other fields such as the medical, pharmaceutical, and research lab professions. Most government organizations that deal with ecology-based issues, such as natural resources or environmental monitoring, have lower budgets compared to other government departments. Also, non-government organizations that work in these fields are mainly non-profit. The best way to get into these competitive fields is via internships and temporary positions. Experience is key. Temporary positions are low pay, but they provide the building blocks of experience to get you more permanent and better pay positions or entry into graduate school with an assistantship. Graduate assistantships provide opportunities for graduate students to get paid, have benefits, and have tuition covered. That is a good deal. Look for jobs in places you would never think to look. Examples of unique employers in these fields include private consulting organizations, research labs doing environmental work, and Department of Defense.
What general advice would you give to an Environmental Technician?
Aaron Haines Ph.D., Certified Wildlife Biologist ®: Having more technical skill sets can help you get entry level positions that can lead to higher pay positions. These include the ability to extract DNA from biological samples and understand the process of DNA sequencing, be familiar with geographical information systems (GIS) software such as ArcPro, ArcGIS, QGIS, be familiar with programming language such as Phyton and R statical programming, and government policies that impact your field of study.
Be a member of a professional organization and attend their conferences. This will allow you the opportunity to learn from others, network, and meet potential future employers.
What Environmental Technician skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Aaron Haines Ph.D., Certified Wildlife Biologist ®: The current most prevalent skill sets and qualifications for students interested in the ecology and environmental fields include good communication through speaking and writing. It is important to be able to communicate as an effective team member, communicate with private landowners, volunteers, and to the public for education purposes. Writing skills will be important for correctly recording data, completing certifications, helping to write grants (and other fundraising efforts) and completing reports.
Be in good physical condition to complete fieldwork and gather data. Sometimes you will be deep in the field and off-trail. The better shape you are in, the better your ability to deal with hot, cold, or humid weather conditions and bothersome insects. Physical exhaustion leads to increased errors in the field.
When in the field, certain professions prefer combinations of the following skills: Use of GPS units, ability to drive 4-wheel drive vehicles and/or ATVs, boating experience, chainsaw, herbicide and pesticide application, identification of flora and fauna, ability access soil and water quality, and prescribed fire experience.
Have standard IT skills to gather data via phone or tablet and be familiar with standard programs such as WORD, EXCEL, and ACCESS.
Future skills will include the ability to gather data remotely from the field (e.g., Lidar spatial data, acoustic recordings, remote cameras, drone data, eDNA) and onto the Could. It will also be beneficial to speak more than one language and be able to develop a strong web presence for your project and organization.
Michael Pretes
Professor and Chair of Geoscience, University of North AlabamaUniversity of North Alabama
Geography And Cartography
What skills stand out on Environmental Technician resumes?
Michael Pretes: Environmental Analyst jobs are increasingly important, given greater impact and awareness of sustainability and climate change issues. Environmental Analysts help determine the environmental impacts of human actions and corporate and government policies. They also help corporations and government agencies achieve compliance with environmental regulations. Work, internship, or volunteer experience in areas related to the job really stands out on a resume. This could mean work that involves either field experience or policy development and reports writing. Field experience can mean the collection of land, water, or atmospheric data in the area of impact rather than from textual sources. Each type of data collection will require its own set of skills. Having been involved in policy decisions or having written and published reports on environmental conditions or impacts also looks good for some types of jobs.
What soft skills should all Environmental Technicians possess?
Michael Pretes: Good communication skills are essential for Environmental Analyst positions, as indeed they are for most jobs. This means good written, oral, and visual communication skills. Writing skills are used in everything from emails to technical reports. Oral communication skills are essential when speaking to individuals and to small and large groups. And visual communication skills are increasingly important in everything from social media to the production of maps, charts, and images.
What skills will help Environmental Technicians earn the most?
Michael Pretes: The above two abilities--good communication skills and experience with Remote Sensing technologies--will give anyone an edge. Having a Master's degree or extensive field experience can also help boost your salary.
Dr. Dan Ferreira Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Environmental ScienceKennesaw State University
Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology
What general advice would you give to an Environmental Technician?
Dr. Dan Ferreira Ph.D.: I think it's tough to negotiate higher salaries when you're first starting out, but I think it's perfectly reasonable during a job interview to ask what the advancement potential is like for the position. What is the next step up the ladder and how long does it usually take for a new employee to get promoted to that step? What is the salary like for that position? That way you can have an idea what your future earning potential is going to be like before you take a job. If the employer says that you won't get promoted to the next step for 5 years or that the next step only pays $0.50 an hour more than the entry level step, that's probably a red flag that this is an employer you should avoid. Make sure you also ask about overtime. If you get paid time and a half for working over 40 hours, that gives you an opportunity to pad your paycheck if you can put in a few extra hours. Also, I think it's important to consider non-financial benefits for a position when you think about your total compensation. Will the employer pay for you to get additional certifications in that field? Will the employer pay for you to go to grad school and get your Master's at some point? Will the employer match donations you make to charitable organizations you are passionate about? There are a lot more considerations, when it comes to compensation, than just the base salary or hourly rate.
What Environmental Technician skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Dr. Dan Ferreira Ph.D.: I think the best advice I can offer recent graduates is to be as flexible as possible. Being willing to relocate, for example, vastly expands the number of potential jobs they can apply to. Applying for positions that might not be exactly where they want to go, but might give them the experience or skills they need to get to their desired career after a year or two also will help open more doors. So if you can't find your ideal job right away, consider that internship or volunteer opportunity that will make you more marketable in the future.
What will help Environmental Technicians increase their earning potential?
Dr. Dan Ferreira Ph.D.: In environmental science, GIS is becoming a requirement for a lot more jobs. It has always been a useful skillset, but it has been integrated into a lot more jobs in the environmental field than 5 or 10 years ago. We require all of our environmental science majors to take at least one GIS class for this reason, but we have several others available as electives and our students can even pursue a GIS certificate through our Geography department using elective credits for our degree program. Coming from an environmental consulting background, I also tell students to consider getting their 40-hour HAZWOPER certification if they are interested in that field. It's required for any job where you deal with hazardous materials or work on contaminated sites, so having one of those already under your belt when you apply for a job makes you much more appealing to employers since they don't have to pay for you to get it if they hire you.
Joseph Niederhauser Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of BiologyWest Virginia Wesleyan College
Department of Biology and Environmental Science
What soft skills should all Environmental Technicians possess?
Joseph Niederhauser Ph.D.: Communication skills are essential as an Environmental Scientist. You need to communicate with a lot of different people and organizations over a variety of mediums. Having good people skills is very important when communicating with team members, the public, government officials, and property and business owners, especially when the data collected impacts them. Presentation skills are also very important in order to present data at government agencies, scientific meetings, and public talks.
Erin Surdo Ph.D.
Teaching Assistant Professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies, Environmental EngineeringUniversity of Minnesota
Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geo- Engineering
What skills stand out on Environmental Technician resumes?
Erin Surdo Ph.D.: Students with strong oral communication and project management skills and technical background in material balances and fluid mechanics often succeed in environmental engineering careers.
Dr. Pascale Biron Ph.D.
ProfessorConcordia University
Department of Geography, Planning and Environment
What skills stand out on Environmental Technician resumes?
Dr. Pascale Biron Ph.D.: A multidisciplinary understanding of environmental problems (Earth systems and climate science, environmental biology, environmental chemistry) is crucial considering the increasing number of challenges, including climate change, severe weather events, the loss of biodiversity, pollution, and the unsustainable use of the Earth's resources that we face in the Anthropocene.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Environmental Technicians?
Dr. Pascale Biron Ph.D.: - Geographical Information Systems, remote sensing, and geospatial data analysis
- Statistics
- Computer programming
What skills will help Environmental Technicians earn the most?
Dr. Pascale Biron Ph.D.: - Solid, interdisciplinary, environmental foundations in sustainability from a science perspective
- Tools to solve practical problems in the field of environmental science, including programming, geospatial
technologies and statistics
Logan Brenner Ph.D.
Assistant Professor in Environmental ScienceBarnard College
Environmental Science Department
What skills stand out on Environmental Technician resumes?
Logan Brenner Ph.D.: It is really impressive to see some type of research experience outlined on a resume and related output, such as a presentation or poster at a conference or some other public venue or an article. It is important that you clearly explain the research project on the resume or CV to highlight its relevance to whatever job you are applying for. Maybe the content is relevant, or instead, it is the skills that you learned. Honestly, it is becoming much more commonplace to see a research project on a resume, so I would almost say that it is a critical component. Conducting research indicates that you can work independently and/or in a team, solve problems, and think creatively and critically. Summarizing your findings in a conference presentation or a write-up shows that you can distill and communicate your most important and compelling conclusions and that you can finish a project.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Environmental Technicians?
Logan Brenner Ph.D.: Keep in mind the field of environmental science is quite broad, and so the hard or technical skills that are necessary for one specialty may be less important in another. Being able to code and work with big data are two skills that are becoming more important each day. Try to become semi-proficient in at least one coding language, but you will likely have to learn another in the not-so-distant future. While math was never my favorite subject, I admit that many of my classes became relevant in my work. It is hard to know when in your career applying what you learned about partial derivatives will become necessary, but it will, and you will wish you paid better attention in Calculus Class (speaking from experience). Being able to model, often a combination of coding and math, is a complex but valuable skill. When applied, this could mean using or understanding climate models, groundwater flow, population growth, viral spread, or predictions of any kind. Being able to model is a powerful tool.
What skills will help Environmental Technicians earn the most?
Logan Brenner Ph.D.: Suppose by earn we are referring to earning money. In that case, you want to hone skills applicable to a wide variety of careers and fields. Many people call these transferrable skills. Being able to code and work with large amounts of data are critical skills to any STEM field and are becoming more relevant in nearly every sector. If you can get experience coding or working with data in a classroom setting, that is great. If you can also get some hands-on experience applying those skills to a research project, independent study, or during an internship, even better. Being comfortable working with numbers, i.e., proficient in math, is also valuable. Numerous soft skills will also help you excel in the workplace, such as being flexible and ready to pivot when your work takes you in a new direction, ease with public speaking and communication, and self-confidence. Believing in yourself will make it easier for others to believe in you. This is much easier said than done, and many successful people struggle with imposter syndrome and managing their own self-confidence. It is totally normal but something that you should prioritize throughout your professional career.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Environmental Technicians?
Dr. Eban Goodstein: Solid natural science background, esp ecology, and biogeochemical cycles.
Dr. Chelsea Ward
ProfessorAuburn University-Montgomery
Department of Biology and Environmental Science Advising
What will help Environmental Technicians increase their earning potential?
Dr. Chelsea Ward: Science has always been a field that values post-graduate education. I don't see that changing. However, I anticipate that biologists with undergraduate degrees and broader skill sets will do better. Those with GIS or computer programming skills will be in a much better place to find positions in their field that are satisfying than those that are only trained in traditional bench skills.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Environmental Technician job market given the pandemic?
Joshua Raabe Ph.D.: I foresee an increase in the fisheries job market over the next few years due to the pandemics. Millions of people went fishing, many for the first time, because it was a great opportunity to get outdoors in a safe manner and now are hooked. Agencies will be able to hire more employees as budgets are directly influenced by license and tackle sales. Agencies are currently hiring employees that they could not went the pandemic started, as field sampling and data analysis needs to occur to inform management decisions.
What technical skills for an Environmental Technician stand out to employers?
Joshua Raabe Ph.D.: Many graduates' first position is a field technician, so being able to handle and identify fish, trailer and operate boats, and use a variety of sampling equipment are essential skills. Management and research requires data analysis, so statistics, computer programming, and GIS are valuable skills. Finally, writing and communication skills are absolutely necessary to communicate science to the public and each other.
Richard Zack Ph.D.
Associate Dean for Academic ProgramsWashington State University
Department of Entomology
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Environmental Technician job market given the pandemic?
Richard Zack Ph.D.: While the pandemic has certainly had a significant effect on agricultural communities, agriculture was and will remain one of the most essential of our industries. As we come out of the pandemic, I think that we are going to see a continuation of the growth in available positions and hiring. It is estimated that we are only producing 30% of the individuals that are needed to fill all available positions. This is especially true for students that are looking for well-paying, entry level positions with small to large sized firms. We, at the university, continue to receive requests from our industry partners for interviews with students. We believe that this fall, when we can hopefully get back to face to face meetings, we will have a pent-up demand for our career services and some of our largest, in terms of industry attendance, career fairs.
What soft skills should all Environmental Technicians possess?
Richard Zack Ph.D.: Our industry partners and our advisory groups have been telling us for a while that soft-skills are very important to them. While they are seeking students with good technical backgrounds, they can and usually do fill in the details of individual types of positions through their own training programs. However, they want employees that are interested in what their companies do and how they operate, individuals that are eager to learn and progress through a system, individuals that have experienced and have an appreciation for working in teams, individuals that are creative but understand the chain of command, and as one large regional employer put it to me, individuals that show up for work on time and don't ask, as a first question, about vacation times and day's off. They are also very interested in employees that have cultural competencies and can work with individuals from a wide variety of backgrounds. In many of our fields, it is important that students look for internships with companies in which they have an interest. Many of our students our hired out of internships. So, it is very important for an individual to present themselves in the best possible manner when they are interacting with possible employers.
How have salaries changed over time for Environmental Technicians?
Richard Zack Ph.D.: Salaries at all levels of employment continue to rise. Starting salaries in most of our disciplines are very competitive with other non-agricultural disciplines. It is a very competitive market for our best students and many of them will receive 4-5 position offers before graduation.
Daniel Larsen
Professor of Earth SciencesThe University of Memphis
Department of Earth Sciences
What's a good job out of college for Environmental Technicians?
Daniel Larsen: At the Bachelors level, typical entry-level jobs include environmental technicians and specialists (state environmental divisions), and mud loggers in the petroleum industry. At the Masters level, typical jobs include entry-level environmental project managers or support staff, higher level technical staff at state environmental divisions, and entry-level state and federal survey positions, as well as mud loggers and entry-level positions in the petroleum industry.
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Environmental Technicians?
Elvia Melendez-Ackerman Ph.D.: An unwritten rule is that the more marketable college graduates not only finish with an appropriate selection of content courses but also with a myriad of hands-on experiences where the student has had the opportunity to develop and strengthen scientific and technical skills, but just as important are the soft skills expected in their chosen profession. Many of these hands-on experiences occur off campus and indeed these are highly encouraged by academic advisors. For most students graduating after 2020, the pandemic reduced the number of opportunities in which they engaged in these types of activities, reducing their number of hours spent in "job-like" settings. It is in these settings where students can develop and demonstrate their leadership, teamwork and, organizational skills and, their ability to get the job done.
Because these off-campus experiences are carried out under supervision, they become important sources of letters of recommendations for employment from experts that truly know how they can perform under different situations. In the short-term, COVID-19 and events with similar outcomes (i.e.. shutdown of educational facilities) could be viewed as a selective factor that would favor those students that engaged early in their undergraduate degree in complementary activities (i.e., internships, volunteer work in research projects, research for credit, etc.). Within that context, shutdowns related to the pandemic might have impacted job preparedness of students from different socio-economic backgrounds differently. For those students that needed to work to pay for college, engaging early in ancillary professional activities might not have been an option. Socio-economic disparities in terms of access to technology (good computer, high speed internet) may have also led to unequal learning experiences. I taught a course in drone technologies where we managed to purchase GIS software licenses to allow students to work on simple spatial analyses remotely, but some students just did not have the computing capacity to operate these at home and ended up having to watch others.
For employers looking to hire recent college graduates that can do reliable fieldwork and perform well under fieldwork conditions (e.g., research areas related to environmental, social, or social-environmental work), the pool of experienced students would now be reduced. At the same time, college graduates will have a tougher time accruing the much-needed experience time that will make them competitive.
What certifications/licenses/courses can have the biggest impact for Environmental Technicians?
Elvia Melendez-Ackerman Ph.D.: Getting a job is all about skills. Any science major who is seriously thinking about becoming a researcher is expected to have good skills in data analysis, modelling and visualization, statistical skills (spatial and temporal). In short, they are required to have fundamental data skills to conduct research. This is particularly true for any graduate in Environmental Sciences where an immense amount of data is generated by so many organizations and agencies around the world. Most jobs list these stills as a must, but some even require that students be proficient in a computing language (R, Python, etc.).
There are indeed many online courses, certifications (on computer languages like R, Python or software such as ArcGIS) and resources available that students could take advantage of especially during these pandemic times. These skills require practice and time, but the advantage is that they allow for conducting certain aspects of research remotely in ways that can advance anyone's career. These skills indeed can not only expand the career mobility of prospective hires but also give them a better chance to fit in interdisciplinary groups.
What soft skills should all Environmental Technicians possess?
Elvia Melendez-Ackerman Ph.D.: To me the following are almost universal. College graduates should be responsible, reliable, have good organizational skills, great capacity work both in groups and independently. Ideally a college graduate shows good leadership, communication, and problem-solving abilities. These last three often appear as requirements in job applications, but even if unlisted you better believe that a prospective employer is looking for those skills when reviewing an application. The pandemic brought to the forefront the importance of communication skills (written and oral) and the importance of networking especially in their professional environments. It has also shifted the ways in which communication needs to be conducted in workplaces. Understanding and becoming proficient in these new communication strategies is more desirable than ever.