Ecologist

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.

$80,000 median salary

Bachelor's Degree

A Day in the Job

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.

Work Takes Place

Both Indoors and Outdoors

Skills

Attention to detail
Critical thinking and problem solving
Leadership
Science

Career Categories

Protecting the Natural World Investigating the Environment

Potential Employers

Federal government agencies such as the U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
State departments of natural resources or environmental quality
Environmental consulting firms
Nonprofit and conservation organizations

A Day in the Life

Meet a Stream Monitoring Scientist

Imagine getting paid to explore rivers, collect aquatic insects, study fish populations, and uncover what's happening beneath the surface of streams and lakes. Clint Goodrich, Stream Monitoring Scientist with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, shares how his childhood fascination with creatures hidden beneath the water eventually led to more than 30 years working in outdoor science. Learn more about Clint's career journey and what it's like to be a Stream Monitoring Scientist in his presentation at the Green Pathways: Careers That Matter event in 2026.