Forestry — careers, salary and study routes
Managing forests as living systems: growing trees, protecting wildlife and balancing conservation with people's needs.
Check your fit for Forestry →What Forestry is about
Forestry is an applied science about looking after forests. You study how trees grow and regenerate, forest measurement and management plans, wildlife and protected-area management, agroforestry, wood science and forest products, and the laws and policies that govern forest land and forest-dwelling communities.
It suits outdoor-minded science students who can handle field camps and remote postings. Careers include forest services through state and UPSC exams, forest development corporations, wildlife and conservation NGOs, agroforestry and plantation companies, environmental consulting and research. It is a small field with fewer colleges than agriculture, which keeps batches close-knit.
What you'll study
- Silviculture: raising and tending forests
- Forest mensuration and inventory
- Forest management and working plans
- Wildlife biology and protected-area management
- Agroforestry and social forestry
- Wood science, forest products and utilisation
- Forest policy, law and forest rights
- Field tours and forest camps
Studying Forestry in India
You need PCB, PCM or PCMB in Class 12. B.Sc (Hons) Forestry is taught at state agricultural and forestry universities, with part of the seats filled through CUET-UG under ICAR and the rest through state tests or merit; the Forest Research Institute in Dehradun and the Wildlife Institute of India are key postgraduate centres. The Indian Forest Service is entered through a UPSC exam that needs a science, agriculture, forestry or engineering degree.
Typical degrees
- B.Sc (Hons) Forestry (four years)
- M.Sc Forestry in a chosen specialisation (two years)
- M.Sc Wildlife Science (two years)
Entrance exams
- CUET-UG
Routes in the US and UK
United States
In the US students take a four-year BS in Forestry or Forest Resources, ideally from a programme accredited by the Society of American Foresters; some states license professional foresters.
United Kingdom
UK universities offer a three-year BSc in Forestry or Forest Management, and professionals can become chartered through the Institute of Chartered Foresters.
Frequently asked questions
Does B.Sc Forestry help for the Indian Forest Service exam?
Forestry is one of the degrees that makes you eligible, and it is also an optional subject, so the overlap is useful. Graduates in several other sciences, agriculture and engineering are also eligible.
Is forestry the same as environmental science?
No. Environmental science is broad and covers pollution, climate and policy. Forestry is narrower and more practical, focused on growing, managing and protecting forests and wildlife.
Careers this major opens
The US Department of Education maps Forestry, General (CIP 03.0501) to 6 Standard Occupational Classification codes. Salary and employment figures come from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics via O*NET; the AI-durability signal is our own composite score.
Sources: NCES CIP-2020 → SOC-2018 crosswalk · US Bureau of Labor Statistics (via O*NET) · WhatTNext Ai AI-durability score. Careers ranked by US employment volume.