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Forestry technician vs range technician

The differences between forestry technicians and range technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a forestry technician and a range technician. Additionally, a range technician has an average salary of $36,047, which is higher than the $35,758 average annual salary of a forestry technician.

The top three skills for a forestry technician include harvest, patrol and natural resources. The most important skills for a range technician are noxious weeds, management plans, and compliance checks.

Forestry technician vs range technician overview

Forestry TechnicianRange Technician
Yearly salary$35,758$36,047
Hourly rate$17.19$17.33
Growth rate9%4%
Number of jobs5,8105,976
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 61%Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Average age3838
Years of experience1212

What does a forestry technician do?

A forestry technician specializes in protecting and preserving forests and natural resources. Mostly working outdoors, their responsibilities revolve around collecting and analyzing different samples for research purposes, recording and reviewing findings, devising programs and strategies to protect the forest and animals, and raising public awareness. Furthermore, as a forestry technician, it is essential to implement and enforce rules and regulations to protect forests, coordinate with other agencies such as the fire and police department, and contribute studies to different publications.

What does a range technician do?

Ramp service agents are skilled employees who are responsible for performing tasks in and around the ramp of airports. These agents must handle the loading and unloading of passenger baggage, cargo, and company materials on and off aircraft. They must guide aircraft pilots with hand signals and safety wands upon arrival to guide aircraft in parking. They are required to operate and work with all mechanized ramp equipment safely and efficiently around aircraft. Ramp service agents must also communicate with ground personnel to create loading strategies to ensure on-time departures of passengers.

Forestry technician vs range technician salary

Forestry technicians and range technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

Forestry TechnicianRange Technician
Average salary$35,758$36,047
Salary rangeBetween $27,000 And $45,000Between $27,000 And $47,000
Highest paying CityFairbanks, AKAnchorage, AK
Highest paying stateAlaskaAlaska
Best paying companyBoulder CountyMayor Ethan Berkowitz
Best paying industryGovernmentGovernment

Differences between forestry technician and range technician education

There are a few differences between a forestry technician and a range technician in terms of educational background:

Forestry TechnicianRange Technician
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 61%Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Most common majorForestryEnvironmental Science
Most common collegeDuke UniversityDuke University

Forestry technician vs range technician demographics

Here are the differences between forestry technicians' and range technicians' demographics:

Forestry TechnicianRange Technician
Average age3838
Gender ratioMale, 76.1% Female, 23.9%Male, 78.5% Female, 21.5%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 7.5% Unknown, 5.9% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 7.1% White, 60.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 7.8% White, 60.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%
LGBT Percentage8%8%

Differences between forestry technician and range technician duties and responsibilities

Forestry technician example responsibilities.

  • Participate in manage and prescribe burns, using ignition devices and drip torches.
  • Serve as a timber sale prep crew member completing field work and managing GIS data in support of land management projects.
  • Record data for timber sale plots in the USDA's require format.
  • Perform routine maintenance on foot trails to include spraying, mowing, and raking.
  • Perform wildfire suppression and control, trail maintenance, park and recreation duties, cabin restoration, and patrol.
  • Learned to use maps and GPS devices to plot suggest burn areas, rehabilitation zones, and progress on suppression.
  • Show more

Range technician example responsibilities.

  • Manage fire crews on active wildland fires, supervise safety and coordinate fire suppression.
  • Utilize GIS & GPS technologies to collect location data, monitor, sample, and map natural resources using GPS/GIS units.
  • Complete ATV and vehicle training.
  • Experience with GIS software including ArcMap and ArcGIS.
  • Experience in with the ArcPad mobile GIS platform.
  • Maintain motorize equipment such as leave blowers, lawn mowers, ATV etc.
  • Show more

Forestry technician vs range technician skills

Common forestry technician skills
  • Harvest, 32%
  • Patrol, 12%
  • Natural Resources, 10%
  • GPS, 9%
  • Data Collection, 6%
  • Trail Maintenance, 5%
Common range technician skills
  • Noxious Weeds, 15%
  • Management Plans, 12%
  • Compliance Checks, 11%
  • GPS, 7%
  • BLM, 5%
  • Safety Procedures, 5%

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