Ecologists study the interaction between organisms and their environment. There are different levels of organization that an ecologist may study including species, population, community, ecosystem, biome, and biosphere. With those in mind, an ecologist can get even more focused in their work, and research specific organisms and environments. Many ecologists specialize in areas such as botany, entomology, zoology, or mycology.

Ecologist Liz Howe in Madagascar, with an angonoka (or ploughshare) tortoise, Astrochelys yniphora.

An ecologist typically works for a government agency, a private company, or at a university as a professor. On a typical day, an ecologist may conduct field work in a remote location or work in the lab analyzing field samples. Most ecologists work a typical 40-hour week with the exception of when they are conducting research in the field, which can last for weeks or months at a time with no set work hours.

A person in this job should like working outside and physical activities. One may be expected to do heavy lifting, climbing, hike long distances, and work in difficult conditions. It can be a dirty job and one may need to work with potentially dangerous organisms or environments. For someone to be successful in this career, one needs to have good communication skills to work well with coworkers and others, analytical skills so they can analyze their field data, computer skills to work with data in different software, and critical thinking skills so they can work through their research and data.

Ecologists typically need at least a bachelor’s degree in one of these fields: biology, ecology, microbiology, zoology, environmental science, or related natural resources major. However, advanced degrees (masters and PhDs) are highly desirable and result in a higher starting salary and more dependable work (a lot of entry level field tech jobs are seasonal).

Most places where an ecologist would work require prior research experience along with a higher education degree. Practical experience is extremely important and someone who is in undergrad who wants to become an ecologist should volunteer in a lab, be a research assistant, or be an intern during the summer in the field. The amount of research and experience will be reflected in the salary achieved. Individuals with a PhD can lead their own lab either at a university or private company.

According to indeed.com, the average annual salary for an ecologist is $77,121 per year in the United States. In Colorado the average annual salary for an ecologist is $85,610 per year. While the Bureau of Labor Statistics does not have an official job outlook for ecologists it does have one for environmental scientists. The projected job growth from 2019 to 2029 is 8%.

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