Foresters
Manage public and private forested lands for economic, recreational, and conservation purposes. May inventory the type, amount, and location of standing timber, appraise the timber's worth, negotiate the purchase, and draw up contracts for procurement. May determine how to conserve wildlife habitats, creek beds, water quality, and soil stability, and how best to comply with environmental regulations. May devise plans for planting and growing new trees, monitor trees for healthy growth, and determine optimal harvesting schedules.
Also Known As:
Area Forester
District Forester
Fire Prevention Forester
Forest Practices Field Coordinator
Forester
Procurement Forester
Service Forester
Silviculturist
Timber Marker
Timber Sales Administrator (Timber Sales Admin)
Wages
Annual wages for Foresters in United States
Job Outlook
Average
New job opportunities are likely in the future
United States
2033 Projected Employment
15,900
3% Change From 2023
Explore Foresters video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Plan and direct construction and maintenance of recreation facilities, fire towers, trails, roads and bridges, ensuring that they comply with guidelines and regulations set for forested public lands.
- Establish short- and long-term plans for management of forest lands and forest resources.
- Supervise activities of other forestry workers.
- Provide advice and recommendations, as a consultant on forestry issues, to private woodlot owners, firefighters, government agencies or to companies.
- Study different tree species' classification, life history, light and soil requirements, adaptation to new environmental conditions and resistance to disease and insects.
- Direct, and participate in, forest fire suppression.
- Plan and supervise forestry projects, such as determining the type, number and placement of trees to be planted, managing tree nurseries, thinning forest and monitoring growth of new seedlings.
- Monitor wildlife populations and assess the impacts of forest operations on population and habitats.
- Choose and prepare sites for new trees, using controlled burning, bulldozers, or herbicides to clear weeds, brush, and logging debris.
- Analyze effect of forest conditions on tree growth rates and tree species prevalence and the yield, duration, seed production, growth viability, and germination of different species.
- Monitor contract compliance and results of forestry activities to assure adherence to government regulations.
- Plan and direct forest surveys and related studies and prepare reports and recommendations.
- Plan and supervise forestry projects, such as determining the type, number and placement of trees to be planted, managing tree nurseries, thinning forest and monitoring growth of new seedlings.
- Develop new techniques for wood or residue use.
- Conduct public educational programs on forest care and conservation.
- Plan and implement projects for conservation of wildlife habitats and soil and water quality.
- Plan cutting programs and manage timber sales from harvested areas, assisting companies to achieve production goals.
- Determine methods of cutting and removing timber with minimum waste and environmental damage.
- Perform inspections of forests or forest nurseries.
- Map forest area soils and vegetation to estimate the amount of standing timber and future value and growth.
- Monitor forest-cleared lands to ensure that they are reclaimed to their most suitable end use.
- Develop techniques for measuring and identifying trees.
- Plan and direct forest surveys and related studies and prepare reports and recommendations.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- 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.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- 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.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- 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.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- 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.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")