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| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 407 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 397 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 398 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 400 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 398 | 0.00% |
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $44,773 | $21.53 | +2.2% |
| 2024 | $43,822 | $21.07 | +2.2% |
| 2023 | $42,878 | $20.61 | --0.3% |
| 2022 | $42,997 | $20.67 | --0.5% |
| 2021 | $43,227 | $20.78 | +1.1% |
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 77 | 11% |
| 2 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 310 | 4% |
| 3 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 245 | 4% |
| 4 | Alaska | 739,795 | 31 | 4% |
| 5 | New York | 19,849,399 | 575 | 3% |
| 6 | Pennsylvania | 12,805,537 | 428 | 3% |
| 7 | Illinois | 12,802,023 | 427 | 3% |
| 8 | Georgia | 10,429,379 | 317 | 3% |
| 9 | Ohio | 11,658,609 | 306 | 3% |
| 10 | New Jersey | 9,005,644 | 297 | 3% |
| 11 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 219 | 3% |
| 12 | Washington | 7,405,743 | 219 | 3% |
| 13 | Indiana | 6,666,818 | 199 | 3% |
| 14 | Missouri | 6,113,532 | 198 | 3% |
| 15 | Colorado | 5,607,154 | 149 | 3% |
| 16 | Connecticut | 3,588,184 | 102 | 3% |
| 17 | Arkansas | 3,004,279 | 93 | 3% |
| 18 | Utah | 3,101,833 | 78 | 3% |
| 19 | Delaware | 961,939 | 33 | 3% |
| 20 | California | 39,536,653 | 927 | 2% |
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Albuquerque | 2 | 0% | $38,481 |
Dr. Lincoln Larson Ph.D.: The most important skills in natural resource management are communication skills (both speaking and writing), and that's unlikely to change at any point in the future. There's a common misunderstanding that natural resource management professions don't involve people, but humans are both the cause and the solution to every natural resource management challenge we face today - from climate change to human-wildlife conflict. If you can't effectively communicate with diverse audiences including scientists, practitioners, policy-makers, and the general public, you will struggle. Honing those communication skills earlier and often is the key to a successful career. Another skill that is increasingly important is data management and analysis, especially GIS and spatial data.
Dr. Lincoln Larson Ph.D.: Natural resource management is an applied field, so gaining real-world experience is critical. Try out a few temporary jobs or internships to get a better sense of what you enjoy doing. Whether it's field work, analysis and reporting, outreach and engagement, or something else, you might not discover your strengths and preferences until you get your feet wet or get your boots muddy. Be flexible. Your dream job is unlikely to emerge right away, but gaining experience in a variety of places/contexts and building a professional network of connections will ultimately help you find it. Embrace the unexpected, as that's one of the most exciting and rewarding aspects of working outdoors.
Charles Martin PhD: A career in Natural Resources Management can seem like a daunting task at first, but preparation is key. Our MS program at the University of South Alabama in Marine Conservation and Resource Management emphasizes relevant coursework, the development of technical and applied skills, and networking opportunities through internships and professional meetings. We’ve found this to dramatically enhance a student's success in joining a workforce immediately out of a graduate degree and have a near-100% placement after graduating from our program.
Charles Martin PhD: Marketable skills are critical for finding the right job. We offer several certifications in our MS degree that make our students’ resumes stand out in the crowd - including GIS training and quantitative skills. Prospective employees that can work with large datasets, analyze them, and communicate results always have a leg up on the competition. These skills will be imperative over the next 3-5 years and even beyond that.
Brenden Holland: For professional biologists starting out in this career, field-work often takes up a substantial portion of most days. As a field technician, staff will engage in a wide variety of important tasks, ranging from physical removal of invasive weeds and planting beneficial vegetation, use instrumentation to measure, document and monitor environmental parameters such as point source pollution in waterways, conducting surveys of the spread of invasive plants and animals, observing and documenting endangered species movement and behavior, and even assisting in field rescue of injured or stranded wildlife. In many cases these jobs will take place in beautiful natural reserves and areas of concern such as state and national parks. The job will often entail office and laboratory tasks as well, including data entry and analysis, writing reports, and technical tasks such a use of GIS (Geographic Information Systems) software to record spatial information and possibly use of chemical, genetic and taxonomic analyses in the lab.
Brenden Holland: Professional Resource Managers can enjoy a sense of gratification that accompanies careers that focus on 'making a difference'. Namely, striving for the overarching objectives of understanding causes of environmental challenges, and doing something about this damage, by improving and restoring our natural ecosystems for future generations. There is a somewhat pervasive feeling of helplessness in our society in the face of many large-scale challenges that are incessantly portrayed in the media. But the sense of satisfaction that comes from engaging in work that seeks positive change is a definite perk. The only associated negative aspect I am aware of in this field is two-fold, on the one hand, the lack of public awareness of the dire consequences of 'business as usual' in terms of environmental degradation and loss of biodiversity; and the lack of sufficient resources and available funding for science-based solutions to address these challenges can be frustrating!
Brenden Holland: This is an industry that is undergoing massive growth, and there is an unprecedented need for expansion of this workforce. There is broad consensus that environmental degradation and loss of biodiversity on a global scale has reached a crisis point. One term used for the era we are living in is the Anthropocene, defining our current geological age as an era where human activity is having an unprecedented, massive impact on climate and the environment. Now is the best time in history to enter this field!