<p>My DS is an Environmental Science major at a school with a co-op program. Don't ask me what he plans to do with it, I'm not sure he could answer you either. He writes extremely well, loves all things outdoors, especially the ocean, yet I don't see him sitting behind a desk at the Dept of Natural Resources writing up grant proposals to restore tidal flows and clean up the harbor. Who knows, maybe he'll end up packaging and shipping lobsters up in Maine as his co-op program, who knows?</p>
<p>What do you do for a living? What does your job look like? Do you like it? Are you in an office, outdoors, maybe only a little connected to this field? What's your dream job in this field.</p>
<p>I know, I know, his school can help guide him, as will life. </p>
<p>I'd just like to educate myself a little more so I can have a halfway decent conversation about his field of study.</p>
<p>It is a growing field- oldest Ds boyfriend is getting a masters in environmental engineering.
I work in urban agriculture. ( which means I help local residents learn about native landscaping & I also do habitat restoration)
working in public service ( rangers/researchers etc) is fairly competitive as far as I can tell, but business is becoming more interested in " green" options ( at least as far as PR goes)
[Environmental</a> Science Careers, Environmental Science Jobs: GreenCareersGuide](<a href=“HugeDomains.com”>HugeDomains.com)</p>
<p>I would encourage people to get a broad education & expect grad school for more flexibility.</p>
<p>A large part of environmental science is cleaning up contaminated industrial sites. Soil, groundwater, and air pollution. Some of this is to prevent ongoing pollution, such as from smokestacks or outfalls to rivers. Other times it is the legacy of activity dating back 50 years, when environmental regulations were non-existent. Expect to collect soil, silt, sewage, river, storm drain and drilled core samples. Expect to find underground leaks of gasoline, diesel, oil, chlorinated solvents and hazardous waste. Greenhouse gas reporting is one of the newest requirements, it is quite technical insofar as it requires knowledge of energy terminology and equipment performance. Superfund toxic release reporting is also required by most industry, and in some states, there are varying requirements for hazardous waste reporting, waste reduction and recycling reports, and hazardous air pollutant reports. Innovative recycling of chemicals like acids and solvents is a growing field. All of this work requires a solid background in chemistry, firm knowledge of legal requirements on both the federal, state and local levels, and practical experience in the proper handling of samples for lab analysis. Writing skills are important if work is sought as a consultant. And good math skills to crunch large tables of lab data to verify reporting accuracy and ensure compliance with regulations.</p>
<p>My wife got a BA (Biology), an MS (Zoology), an MPH (Environmental Management) and had a RA with US Fish and Wildlife. She worked for a couple federally funded agencies after graduation and quickly came to the conclusion that the folks calling the shots in the environmental health field were the engineers. So she went back to med school and became a physician instead. Perhaps things have changed somewhat since then, but look closely at the available positions and the required credentials, not just for intro positions, but up the ladder as well.</p>
<p>emeraldkity4 is right that ranger-type jobs are very competitive. If she’s interested in that track, it would be very advisable for her to seek out internships in the field first - that’s how most people get their foot in the door. I spent six months as a Student Conservation Association intern with the Forest Service and it led directly to a career-track park ranger position.</p>
<p>Also, she should be aware that park rangers generally don’t “do” science on a day-to-day basis, at least at entry levels - frontline rangers get hired either as interpreter/naturalists or as law enforcement. Park managers deal with science, but by making decisions based on science, not as primary researchers.</p>
<p>Environmental science is the “softest” of the environmental associated fields. ES grads can work in government or for consulting firms. ES grads do wetland studies required for road design or building on undeveloped land. Hazardous waste studies and remedial design are usually conducted by geologists, hydrogeologists and engineers. Engineers run the “environmental” business. ES in government also has alot to do with wetland restoration and coastal protection; not environmental cleanup. Again, those are engineers. A masters in ES can get you to run the ES department in an engineering firm. Pay for a BS in ES is fairly low, and doesn’t really climb a lot without other skills and/or schooling. There are other paths for ES, but they are all pretty low paying until you develop other skills or degrees.</p>
<p>my partner works for a quasi-governmental organization that helps federal agencies evaluate and study climate change. She has a bachelor’s and master’s in biology (slightly different fields for each) and is working on a doctorate in environmental policy.</p>
<p>She loves it and the pay is good (significantly higher than mine–I am a lawyer at a nonprofit). She was able to get grants and scholarships that kept her debt low and she interacts with interesting people and gets to travel for work. It’s not as hands-on as many environmental jobs but it works well for her.</p>
<p>Son of friend just graduated with ES degree in May. He’s doing policy development and lobbying for a natural resource non-profit in DC.</p>
<p>I have a friend who is part owner of an environmental engineering firm in Vancouver. His firm has 1-2 ES grads who do surveys and help plan industrial site remediation and recovery, but the bulk of their employees are chemE or enviroE.</p>
<p>D1 didn’t have a degree in ES (her degree was in quantitative economics). Her first job out of college was for an environmental consulting firm. She was primarily involved in permitting work for various gas pipelines, wind power projects, and a small construction project at a national park site. She was responsible for economic analyses on how these project impacted the community where the project was located. Most of the others in her group had degrees in biology, geology, or engineering.</p>
<p>I have two college friends who majored in Environmental Science. One works for a large consulting firm in Washington, DC and spent many years working on Superfund project. He ended up going for an MPP eventually. The other works for a corporation and (basically) make sure that their manufacturing and waste disposal is meeting all the government necessary guidelines.</p>
<p>One of my high school teachers who I’m really close to studied environmental sciences and worked in the field for a long time. She worked for a company (I want to say it was an environmental firm hired by other expanding companies or maybe by the city…) doing environmental impact reports. Whenever they wanted to build something on previously vacant land, she would spend a couple of weeks visiting the site, observing the wildlife, and collecting data. Then she would write up the effects of the proposed project.</p>
<p>I know people in research and academia studying environmental science issues (actually, I interned in one of those labs). People have been looking at things like the health implications of inhaling dust particles from the World Trade Center, exposure to carcinogenic chemicals, living near areas of high air pollution and so on. Some of the grad students in the department also went on to work in pharmaceutical companies.</p>