These are the people who feed 330 million Americans, fight wildfires, clean up poisoned land and water, and figure out how to keep forests, oceans, and the climate healthy. The work runs from muddy-boots field jobs and big-machine farming to lab science, drones, and climate policy. If you like being outside, solving real-world puzzles, or doing work you can see and touch, there is a corner of this world for you.
13 fields, 330 careers
Farming & Ranching(29): Growing crops and raising animals: the land, the livestock, the machines, and the people who make food happen every single day.
Specialty Crops & Niche Farming(21): Farms that grow something unusual: fruit orchards, maple syrup, Christmas trees, cut flowers, hops, cranberries, mushrooms, and…
Agricultural Science & AgTech(24): The science and technology behind farming: breeding better crops, healthier soil and animals, and building the drones, robots, sensors,…
Agribusiness, Ag Policy & Extension(27): The money, markets, laws, and teaching side of agriculture: the people who finance farms, trade grain, insure crops, inspect food, write…
Food Science & Food Processing(31): Everything that happens between the farm and your plate: inventing new snacks and flavors, keeping food safe, and running the plants that…
Horticulture, Landscaping & Turf(25): Growing and designing with plants: nurseries and greenhouses, parks and yards, golf courses and stadium fields, giant trees and tiny…
Forestry, Logging & Wildland Fire(27): Managing America's 750 million acres of forest: growing and harvesting timber, keeping forests healthy, and fighting (and preventing)…
Parks, Wildlife & Conservation(23): Protecting wild places and wild animals: national parks, wildlife refuges, rangelands, and the scientists, rangers, and wardens who look…
Fisheries & Aquaculture(23): Managing wild fish populations and farming fish, oysters, and seaweed: from salmon hatcheries and trout streams to oyster farms and indoor…
Water Resources(22): Finding, cleaning, moving, and protecting water: rivers and aquifers, dams and canals, floods and droughts, and the plants that make tap…
Environmental Consulting, Compliance & Cleanup(26): Finding pollution, cleaning it up, and making sure companies and construction projects follow environmental laws, from toxic waste sites…
Waste, Recycling & Composting(28): Where everything goes after you throw it away: garbage collection, landfills, recycling plants, composting, scrapyards, and the people…
Sustainability & Climate Careers(24): Understanding climate change and helping companies, cities, and communities cut emissions and adapt: climate science, carbon accounting,…
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.