Forest / Conservation Technician
What Does a Professional in this Career Do?
A Forest or Conservation Technician works with foresters and conservation scientists to help maintain forests and natural areas. Tracks data on water, soil, disease and insect damage in forest areas; tracks wildlife and maintain trails or campsites; monitors timber and logging activity; patrols and assists with forest fire prevention measures; provides information to the public on forest or natural areas conservation .
Job Outlook
There were 361 Forest / Conservation Technician job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 8524 in the United States.
In combination with other careers in the Forest / Conservation Technician industry, which includes the Forest / Conservation Technician career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2015:
Salary
Many new Forest / Conservation Technician jobs have salaries estimated to be in the following ranges, based on the requirements and responsibilities listed in job postings from the past year.
National
The average estimated salary in the United States for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $47,271.
State
The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $42,863.
Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Forest / Conservation Technician postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $37,838.
Education and Experience
Posted Forest / Conservation Technician jobs typically require the following level of education. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.
| Education Level | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Associate's Degree | 7.72% |
| Bachelor's Degree | 22.21% |
| Master's Degree | 7.98% |
| Doctoral Degree | 2.83% |
| Other | 26.33% |
Posted Forest / Conservation Technician jobs typically require the following number of years of experience. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.
| Years of Experience | Percentage |
|---|---|
| 0 to 2 years | 70.72% |
| 3 to 5 years | 25.29% |
| 6 to 8 years | 2.54% |
| 9+ years | 1.44% |
Skills
Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Forest / Conservation Technician positions expect applicants to have as well as the most common skills that distinguish individuals from their peers. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is also listed.
Baseline Skills
A skill that is required across a broad range of occupations, including this one.
- Management (39.07%)
- Communication (22.71%)
- Operations (22.18%)
- Planning (14.5%)
- Research (12.38%)
- Coordinating (11.85%)
- Lifting Ability (11.56%)
- Customer Service (10.7%)
- Mathematics (8.81%)
- Writing (8.81%)
Defining Skills
A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.
- Fire Behavior (9.71%)
- Forest Management (11.74%)
- Fire Management (10.22%)
- Forestry (54.06%)
- Wildfire Suppression (18.24%)
Necessary Skills
A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.
- Fire Suppression Systems (15.47%)
- Chainsaws (18.56%)
- Resource Management (8.99%)
- Mowing (11.09%)
- Hand Tools (14.9%)
- Natural Resource Management (14.38%)
- Power Tool Operation (11.68%)
- Machinery (9.04%)
- Biology (18.84%)
- Field Research (7.77%)
- Agriculture (25.52%)
- Land Management (12.75%)
- Geographic Information Systems (14.09%)
Distinguishing Skills
A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.
- Rangeland Management (16.54%)
- Reforestation (5.45%)
Salary Boosting Skills
A professional who wishes to excel in this career path may consider developing the following highly valued skills. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is listed.
- Fire Behavior (68.85%)
- Fire Management (72.41%)
Alternative Job Titles
Sometimes employers post jobs with Forest / Conservation Technician skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:
- Forestry Technician
- Natural Resources Specialist
- Skidder Operator
- Natural Resources Technician
- Field Laborer
- Conservation Technician
- Forestry Aide
- Field Technician
- Environmental Field Laborer
- Wildland Firefighter
Similar Occupations
If you are interested in exploring occupations with similar skills, you may want to research the following job titles. Note that we only list occupations that have at least one corresponding NC State Online and Distance Education program.
- Forester
- Conservation Scientist
- Wildlife Biologist
- Soil / Plant Scientist
- Field Biologist
- Nursery / Greenhouse Manager
Common Employers
Here are the employers that have posted the most Forest / Conservation Technician jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.
United States
- United States Forest Service (746)
- United States Department of the Interior (283)
- The Nature Conservancy (183)
- Clean Harbors (107)
- Natural Resources Conservation Service (95)
- State of North Carolina (89)
- State of Ohio (84)
- National Park Service (79)
- Commonwealth Of Pennsylvania (75)
- Koppers Railroad Structures (67)
North Carolina
- State of North Carolina (89)
- United States Forest Service (27)
- Commonwealth Of Virginia (15)
- Koppers Railroad Structures (15)
- Smithfield Foods (11)
- WakeMed (9)
- Hirschbach (7)
- Wake Forest University (6)
- Follett Corporation (6)
- Gunnison Tree Services (5)
NC State Programs Relevant to this Career
If you are interested in preparing for a career in this field, the following NC State Online and Distance Education programs offer a great place to start!
- Climate Adaptation Graduate Certificates
- Parks, Recreation, Tourism and Sport Management Master's Degrees
- Soil Science Undergraduate Certificates
- Soil Science Master's Degrees
All wages, job posting statistics, employment trend projections, and information about skill desirability on this page represents historical data and does not guarantee future conditions. Data is provided by and downloaded regularly from Lightcast. For more information about how Lightcast gathers data and what it represents, see Lightcast Data: Basic Overview on Lightcast's Knowledge Base website.