Also called: Forestry Technician, Timber Cruiser, Conservation Technician
Measures trees, marks timber, maps forests, and helps foresters with field data.
You and a partner grid-walk a forest measuring tree diameters and heights at plot after plot, recording data on a rugged tablet. You might mark boundaries, monitor tree planting, or survey for invasive insects.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Associate's degree (2-year), about 2 years after high school. Associate degree in forest technology is common.
Ways in: 2-year college, On-the-job training. Training cost: Under $15k.
Majors to look at: Forest Technology, Forestry.
Shrinking (about -3% over 10 years). Forest and conservation technicians.
Medium risk for 10 years. Drones, lidar and phone apps measure trees faster; fieldwork remains, but fewer technicians are needed per acre.
Classes: Biology, Algebra I, Earth science.
Official data: O*NET occupation 19-4071.
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