Forestry Schools and Programs in The United States

Forestry Studies in The United States

Forestry is the science and practice of managing forests: growing and measuring trees, planning harvests and balancing timber production with wildlife, water and recreation. According to the University of Maine, forests cover about one-third of the country's land, and federal agencies such as the United States Forest Service manage 20 percent of its timberland. Forestry is taught mainly at public universities with their own research forests, and at two-year colleges that train forest technicians.

How the degree is organised

The standard professional qualification is a bachelor's degree, usually completed in four years of full-time study according to EducationUSA. The University of Maine in Orono, for example, describes its B.S. in Forestry as a four-year curriculum of 120 credits. Most programmes let students choose a specialisation. At Oregon State University in Corvallis the Forestry degree has options in Forest Restoration + Fire, Forest Management and Forest Operations, and the College of Forestry also offers a degree in Forest Engineering. At The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) the Forest Ecosystem Management major has three options: Forest Biology, Forest Management, and Community and Urban Forest Management. Colorado State University in Fort Collins offers concentrations in Forest Biology, Forest Fire Science and Forest Management within its Forest and Rangeland Stewardship major.

Two-year colleges award associate degrees and often prepare students to transfer. Penn State's Forest Technology A.S. trains forestry field personnel in the technical aspects of evaluating, managing and protecting forest resources, and some of its graduates transfer their credits to bachelor's programmes. EducationUSA explains that two years at a community college can be followed by two years of university study to earn a bachelor's degree.

At graduate level there are professional and research degrees. The University of Washington in Seattle offers a Master of Forest Resources in Forest Management, a coursework-based degree that a student with a forestry bachelor's can complete in one calendar year, next to M.S. and Ph.D. degrees. Oregon State offers M.F., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Sustainable Forest Management. In general, EducationUSA describes the master's as a two-year degree and the doctorate as a programme of five to eight years.

Accreditation and licensing

The Society of American Foresters (SAF) accredits degree programmes in forestry, urban forestry and related fields. SAF describes accreditation as a non-governmental peer review and stresses that it is not a ranking system. Universities state the accreditation on their own pages: Oregon State for its BS degrees in Forestry and Forest Engineering, the University of Maine for its B.S. in Forestry, Colorado State for its Forest and Rangeland Stewardship major, and the University of Washington for its Master of Forest Resources. Accreditation matters because, as the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) notes, several states require some form of credentialing for foresters, and in some of them foresters must be licensed.

Admission and language

EducationUSA states that undergraduate applicants generally must have completed high school and be at least 17 years old, and that US universities require an English language proficiency test before admission. Applications for a September start are typically due between November and January, so the search should begin 12 to 18 months earlier. Teaching is in English.

Degree students normally use the F student visa, which requires acceptance by an institution certified by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP). EducationUSA points out that an SEVP-certified institution may not hold national or regional accreditation, so this should be checked separately.

Where to study forestry in the United States

The schools on this page are spread across the forested regions of the country rather than grouped in big cities. In the Pacific Northwest there are Oregon State University, whose College of Forestry has educated students for more than 120 years, and the University of Washington. In the Northeast the list includes the University of Maine, Penn State and Yale University. The University of Florida's School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences has taught the sustainable management of natural resources since 1937. Two-year colleges on the list include North Idaho College and College of Southern Idaho.

Recognition of the qualification

US higher education is not centrally organised: institutions are accredited at national or regional level by independent accrediting bodies. Students who plan to work as foresters in another country should ask the authorities there how a US degree is recognised before they enrol.

Careers

Foresters work for government agencies, forest industries, consulting firms and conservation organisations. The BLS states that conservation scientists and foresters typically need a bachelor's degree in forestry, natural resources or a related field, and projects employment to grow 4 percent from 2025 to 2035, with about 3,000 openings a year. Graduates of two-year programmes work as forest technicians; Penn State mentions employers such as forestry consulting firms, urban tree service companies and utility companies.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a forestry degree take in the United States?

A bachelor's degree usually takes four years of full-time study and an associate degree two. A professional master's can take one to two years, depending on the student's first degree.

What is SAF accreditation?

It is a peer review by the Society of American Foresters confirming that a degree programme meets the profession's educational standards. It is not a ranking, and each university states which of its degrees are accredited.

Do foresters need a licence in the United States?

It depends on the state. According to the BLS, several states require some type of credentialing, and in some of them foresters must be licensed.