Zoologist & Wildlife Biologist
Zoologist & Wildlife Biologist
Career Overview
Zoologists and wildlife biologists study animals, their behavior, biology, and relationships with ecosystems. They conduct research, collect and analyze data, monitor wildlife populations, and help protect species and their natural habitats. Their work may support conservation, environmental management, government programs, research, and education.
Education
A bachelor's degree in zoology, wildlife biology, biology, ecology, or a related field is typically required for entry-level positions. A master's degree may be required for advanced research, specialized positions, or some government and conservation roles. A Ph.D. is generally required to lead independent research or pursue many university-level research and teaching positions.
Future Outlook
Employment of zoologists and wildlife biologists in the United States is projected to grow 2% from 2024 to 2034, with about 1,400 job openings per year, primarily from workers leaving the occupation or retiring. In Canada, employment demand and supply are expected to remain broadly balanced over the 2024–2033 period, although prospects vary considerably by province and territory.
Work Environment
Zoologists and wildlife biologists work in offices, laboratories, research facilities, universities, government agencies, conservation organizations, and outdoor field locations. Fieldwork can involve collecting biological data, observing wildlife, monitoring habitats, and conducting surveys. Some positions require travel or work in remote locations.
Recommended High School Courses
- Chemistry
- Biology
- Math
- Physics
- English
- Botany
- Zoology
- Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
- Mathematics - Using mathematics to solve problems.
- Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Negotiation - Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
- Persuasion - Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
- Science - Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.
- Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
- Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Systems Analysis - Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
- Systems Evaluation - Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
- Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Category Flexibility - The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
- Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
- Far Vision - The ability to see details at a distance.
- Flexibility of Closure - The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material.
- Fluency of Ideas - The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
- Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
- Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
- Mathematical Reasoning - The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
- Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
- Number Facility - The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.
- Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
- Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
- Originality - The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
- Perceptual Speed - The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.
- Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
- Selective Attention - The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
- Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
- Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
- Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
- Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
- Advise others about environmental management or conservation.
- Measure environmental characteristics.
- Prepare scientific or technical reports or presentations.
- Assess compliance with environmental laws.
- Research environmental impact of industrial or development activities.
- Examine characteristics or behavior of living organisms.
- Plan biological research.
- Communicate with the public on environmental issues.
- Prepare biological samples for testing or analysis.
- Care for plants or animals.
- Analyze biological samples.
- Collect biological specimens.
Schools
Appalachian State Univers...
Bemidji State University
Boise State University
Bradley University
Central Connecticut State...
Coastal Carolina Universi...
Colby Community College
Colorado State University...
East Central University -...
Emporia State University
Hanover College
Kentucky Wesleyan College
Miami University - Oxford...
Michigan State University
North Carolina State Univ...
Ohio State University-mai...
Ohio Wesleyan University
Oklahoma State University
Oregon State University
Southeastern Oklahoma Sta...
Southern Illinois Univers...
University Of California-...
University Of Maine- Oron...
University Of Montana
University Of Wisconsin-...
University Of Wyoming
Washington State Universi...
Lakehead University- O...
University Of British...
University Of Guelph
Potential Scholarships
5 Strong Scholarship
Agnes M. Lindsay Scholars...
- Traditional Fulbright P...
Approx Salary Expectation
Low End:
$49,000.00 /yr
Avg/Med:
$73,000.00 /yr
High End:
$114,000.00 /yr
Related Careers
References
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/.
Trend Analysis - Explorer the Market, Labour Market Information, Government of Canada https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis.
O*NET OnLine, National Center for O*NET Development, https://www.onetonline.org/.
Trend Analysis - Explorer the Market, Labour Market Information, Government of Canada https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis.
O*NET OnLine, National Center for O*NET Development, https://www.onetonline.org/.