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Studies & Degrees in Forestry Engineering

Forestry engineering is the branch of engineering that deals with forests and other wooded land: how to plant, measure, manage, harvest, protect and restore them, and how to process what they produce. It combines biology and ecology with surveying, hydraulics, machinery, economics and law. The forestry course at the Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz of the Universidade de São Paulo sums up the profession as work that seeks to reconcile production with the conservation of natural resources.

The Spanish ministerial order that sets the content of forestry degrees gives a good picture of what students learn. After the basic sciences come forest botany, zoology and ecology, soil science and climatology, surveying, geographic information systems and remote sensing, forest hydraulics, machinery, forest roads, silviculture, forest mensuration and inventory, harvesting, forest law and policy, and project management. Later courses cover reforestation, forest management planning, pests and diseases, the prevention and fighting of forest fires, hunting and fishing management, landscape, the restoration of degraded land and the wood, pulp, cork and resin industries.

Qualifications and levels

The route depends on the country, and in several countries the title of forestry engineer is protected by law.

  • Spain, bachelor's degree (grado). Ingeniero Técnico Forestal is a regulated profession that requires an official bachelor's degree. Under Orden CIN/324/2009 the degree has 240 ECTS credits: 60 of basic sciences, 60 common to the forestry branch, a block of 48 credits in one specific technology and a final degree project of 12 credits. Degree names vary. The Universidad de Santiago de Compostela teaches the Grado en Ingeniería Forestal y del Medio Natural on its Lugo campus: four academic years, 45 places, taught in Spanish and Galician, and qualifying for the profession in the specialities of forest operations and forest industries. The Universidad Politécnica de Madrid lists a Grado en Ingeniería Forestal and a Grado en Ingeniería del Medio Natural at its ETSI de Montes, Forestal y del Medio Natural, and the Universidad de Oviedo lists a Grado en Ingeniería Forestal y del Medio Natural.
  • Spain, master's degree. The senior profession, Ingeniero de Montes, requires an official master's degree that qualifies for it. Orden CIN/326/2009 requires that the bachelor's and master's studies together add up to at least 300 ECTS credits. Official master's degrees in Spain have 60, 90 or 120 credits.
  • Spain, vocational training (FP). The higher-level qualification Técnico Superior en Gestión Forestal y del Medio Natural lasts 2,000 hours and trains supervisors of forestry work rather than engineers.
  • Chile. Forestry engineering is a five-year professional degree. At the Universidad de Concepción students obtain the academic degree of Licenciado/a en Ingeniería Forestal at the eighth semester, when they may apply to the Magíster en Ciencias Forestales, and finish with the professional title of Ingeniero/a Forestal. The Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile gives the duration of its Ingeniería Forestal programme as 10 semesters.
  • Brazil. Engenharia Florestal at the Universidade de São Paulo is a full-time five-year bachelor's programme with 40 places a year, taught at the Piracicaba campus, which has two teaching farms.
  • United States. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, foresters typically need a bachelor's degree in forestry, natural resources or a related field, with courses in biology, ecology and forest measurement. Some states require foresters to be licensed.

Where to study it

This directory lists 12 active schools for forestry engineering: seven in Spain, two in Chile and one each in Brazil, Colombia and Argentina. In Spain these include the public Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Universidad de Oviedo and Universidad de Vigo, and the private Universidad Católica de Ávila. In Latin America the directory lists the Universidad de Concepción and the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, the Universidade de São Paulo, the Universidad Nacional de Colombia and the Universidad Nacional de La Plata.

The language of instruction is normally the national one: Spanish in Spain and Spanish-speaking America, with Galician also used at the Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, and Portuguese in Brazil. A student who wants to practise in another country should check whether the title is regulated there, as it is in Spain, and how a foreign degree is recognised.

Careers

Forestry engineers work for public forest services, forestry and timber companies, consultancies, research institutes and non-governmental organisations. The Universidad de Concepción names public bodies such as Chile's Corporación Nacional Forestal, private forestry companies, universities, municipalities, international organisations and private consultancy as the usual employers.

Holders of the Spanish vocational qualification work, for example, as coordinators of forest fire prevention and fire-fighting units or as forest rangers.

For the United States, the Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 40,900 jobs for conservation scientists and foresters in 2025 and projects employment to grow 4 percent from 2025 to 2035, about as fast as the average for all occupations.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a forestry engineering degree take?

In Spain the bachelor's degree has 240 ECTS credits, which is four academic years. In Chile and Brazil the programmes described here last five years.

What is the difference between Ingeniero Técnico Forestal and Ingeniero de Montes in Spain?

Both are regulated professions. The first requires an official bachelor's degree that meets Orden CIN/324/2009. The second requires an official master's degree that meets Orden CIN/326/2009, with at least 300 ECTS credits between bachelor's and master's studies.

Can forestry be studied without going to university?

Yes. In Spain the higher vocational qualification Técnico Superior en Gestión Forestal y del Medio Natural lasts 2,000 hours. It does not give the title of engineer.