college helpful?

[vtbuckslayer]

I am currently going to school for an associates degree in forestry.  Wondering what people have for schooling and if it paid off in the long run. and two vs. four year.  i believe its a common assumption the more years of schooling the more money you will make.  i was also thinking about two associates one as a forest tech and one for urban tree management?  just looking around trying to get a feel for the years to come. thanks

[Texas Ranger]

Graduate forester, run my own business, the more education the better, but, a little education wrongly applied will cause problems.  Or, in other words, get as much education as you can, work for someone else till you are educated in what you want to do.  A college degree with no experience is just that, a degree.

[woodmills1]

I went to college first for engineering tried and didn't take, then did masters in math education did tha 27 years.  Now i haul and cut trees

[Ron Wenrich]

BS in forest science.  I've been a procurement forester, a consulting forester, a utility forester, a logger and now I make my living in sawmills. 

You can try it without a degree, but the degree will open doors.  You can learn things through experience, but you'll learn it faster with a degree to back you up.

The 4 year degree gets you into management.  You might not be interested in that right now, but you'll appreciate it further down the line. 

[beenthere]

........  i believe its a common assumption the more years of schooling the more money you will make.  ........

Welcome to the forum.
Keep in mind that the years of schooling and the money you will make are not automatic. The money you make regardless of the schooling you have will be (mostly) directly proportional to the effort you put forth in the job. The schooling should help you with the tools to put forth that effort, be it the technical jargon needed or the pitfalls you need to avoid. Do wish you the best, and would encourage you to seek schooling in the area that seems most exciting to you at this time.

A daughter of mine went to business school, and came out with a degree and high grades. So much talk and bragging from the business school that all their graduates obtained jobs upon graduating. About a month after graduation, she was very depressed that she didn't have a job. We then realized that she thought of her degree as the 'ticket' to a job, and that she'd be scooped up by an employer right away. After sorting that out, she put her energy into applying herself and going after work. Became quite successful in the business world, and bowed out to raise a family. But it was a lesson learned.

[WDH]

Undergraduate Forestry degree and stayed on for a Masters.  I believe that it was well worth it.  You should consider a 4 year degree if you have the finances and the will to apply yourself.

[Clark]

As one who has a bachelors in forest management and am currently trying to work my way into a forester position (as compared to a forest technician), I would highly recommend getting the four year degree.  With either degree you will (most likely) start out doing some sort of inventory work or other repetitive work that the foresters don't want to bother with.  This is good for you because it forces you to see the woods from a forestry perspective, that is, with some objectiveness about what is happening in the forest.  It also gives you experience that can be applied anywhere in the US.  Inventory is basically the same whether it is in the SE or the interior west.

Now some people can do inventory and cruise work for years and never tire of it.  That tends to be the minority group.  The rest of us get sick of doing the same exact thing every day.  Once you have several years experience as a technician you're a better qualified candidate to do things like set up timber sales, mark timber (although that tends to be an entry-level job also), inspect others doing the inventory, etc.  You've been in the woods long enough to know what's going on.  At that point you can hopefully get a job as a forester where your work will hopefully be more varied, you'll have more responsibility and get paid better.  Unless you have a two year degree, then it is very difficult to move beyond the technician level jobs, many of which happen to be inventory and/or cruising.

If you can do it, get the four year degree.

Clark

[Dan_Shade]

I don't have a forestry degree, mine is a BS in electrical engineering, with that said:

Education will open doors for you and allow you to make your own path much easier.  I'd highly recommend the 4 year degree too.  sometimes, I wish I had stuck through a masters, but then again....

If you wisely market yourself, you can do things much easier with a 4 year degree (kind of what Beenthere is saying).   The older I get, and more professional experience I acheive, I realize the value of my education. 

Also, no one can take your education away from you.

[Dodgy Loner]

I have a B.S. and an M.S. in forestry from UGA.  It definitely made me a more desirable candidate for the jobs I applied for, and I'm very glad that I stuck with it to get the M.S.  I would highly recommend that you go ahead and pursue your four-year degree, or you will eventually hit a ceiling (this is true in the world of business and even more so if you work for the government, like I do).  If you intend to be self-employed or to work for a small company, you are more likely to be rewarded for your efforts rather than your education.

[Dan_Shade]

you'll find that your education influences how you persue your efforts!

just don't get snooty about it

[iffy]

When my son graduated with a bachelor's in wildlife and parks management, he found that all the permanent government jobs in his field required a master's degree. He was lamenting to me about the requirement, and how he didn't see that the work really required a master's. I told him when you have a glut of graduates in your field, as there was at that time, the easiest way to weed out 2/3 to 3/4 of them was to require a master's for the job. He went thru a series of seasonal jobs and then finally landed permanent work. After several years of experience he was able to bid into a job in the locality he wanted to work in.
Bottom line, get all the education you can afford, and probably some that you can't afford.

[woodtroll]

Get at least the four year. It gives a good base for your real education when you start working in forestry.
Plus I highly recommend summer work in forestry or your field. 
The combination of work experience and education is a lot more desirable in an employee.

[thecfarm]

vtbuckslayer,wishful thinking or have a few bucks under your belt all ready?I do want to welcome you to the forum.Good luck with your education.

[Black_Bear]

Speaking of bucks, I traveled to Bangor on Friday and saw a nice buck in the 200 lb. range crossing Rt. 156 at the McCrillis Corner Road intersection. He ran up across the field past some posted signs and the house and into a stand of white pine. This was at about 5:45AM.

VTBuckslayer: VT is a different animal because it doesn't offer a foresters license. Other northeast states that require a license have different avenues that you can take when it comes to school and experience requirements. Figure out where you want to live and what you want to do for a career, and that should dictate which degree you should get.

I think my 4 year Forest Operations degree has opened many doors for me that a 2 year degree wouldn't open and that is all I could ask for. Of course, working hard and being disciplined will go a long ways also.


 

[cantcutter]

The average hunter in Vermont takes one buck every 10 years...My father-in-law is below average...he hasn't taken one in 32 years

On the education front...What do you plan to do with the degree...that has everything to do with it... If you are willing to relocate to a different part of the country for work than by all means go for the 4 year (Keep in mind that most bachalor'degrees are only good as prep for graduate school) and then a masters... If you want to stay part in that part of the country get the two year and go to work....

My wife and I are both from Vermont... I have a BA in Political Science and she a Masters in Medical Genetics... we moved out of the northeast going on 6 years ago because neither of us could find work there.

[Cedarman]

BS  Geoscience and more schooling to be a math teacher.  Worked oil industry for 7 years, taught math 4 years and about 30 years ago started a custom haybaling operation and then small scale sawmilling and now a decent business involving ERC.

I thought college was a great 4 years.  Get as much as you can afford, but also participate in some of the organizations, go to the events, take in some ball games, be active participant in all that college has to offer (well not really all).  Savor the experiences.  Get to know your professors so that they know you personally.  Get to know all of the students in your area of study.  When you get out, and after a few years call some of your teachers up and let them know how you are doing.

Good luck

[okmulch]

B.S foresty from Purdue, built sawmill in Alabama and ran it for nine years moved to Oklahoma and now grind cedar trees for a living.
Sawmill was family business so I got degree for backup plan if cedar business does not work.

[vtbuckslayer]

thanks everyone for the input.  i will be graduating in the spring as a forest technician from paul smiths college.  i think about gettin out of the northest and heading to the midwest for my last two years. get a little different perspective in another part of the country. thanks again

[pappy19]

Actually, a 2 year Associates degree will open more doors than a 4 year degree. If you look at the Federal(U>S> Forest Service, BLM and state forestry jobs) you will find many more opportunities for work than you will as a "professional" forester. I almost went to Paul Smith's and it is known as a fine forestry tech school. I would suggest that you look at the western states for any possible jobs, just to get the experience. Unfortunately, forestry as a whole, is at the bottom of the employment possibilities, but will be on the way up as the "no-forest management" crowd is getting scorched with the forest fires due to no management. Things will change eventually.

[Ron Wenrich]

When I graduated with a 4 year degree, there were no jobs at the government level.  I know of one guy that got a technician's job at the state.  He had a Masters plus military preference.  He is now the head of the district.