# Forestry and Conservation Science Teachers, Postsecondary

US SOC code 25-1043. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/25-1043

Also called: Forestry professor, Conservation science professor, Forestry and conservation science teacher, Forest science postsec instructor, Forestry faculty.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **1,520** US postsecondary forestry and conservation science teachers, with median pay of **$101,420** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2003, the highest was **2,990**, in May 2005. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://www.appalachianhistory.net/2019/05/first-forestry-school-in-usa.html) of **40** from 1910, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era in this work: LiDAR + high-resolution remote sensing, 2005 to 2018.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 2.8% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=25-1043&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **42.4%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend. In May 2021 BLS changed how it estimates these counts (a model-based method using three years of survey data) and moved fully to the 2018 occupation codes, so part of a change across 2021 can come from the method rather than the work.

## Forestry and Conservation Science Teachers, Postsecondary employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1898
- Latest US employment: 1,520 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [5]
- Latest US median pay: $101,420 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [9]
- Outlook: +2.8% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [22]

### All 28 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1910 | 40 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Appalachian History [1] |
| 1930 | 200 (estimate) | $2,800 (estimate) | Est., Society of American Foresters (via… (employment) [2]; Est., AAUP (pay) [6] |
| 1975 | 900 (estimate) | $17,500 (estimate) | Est., Journal of Forestry (employment) [3]; Est., AAUP (pay) [7] |
| 1995 | 650 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Bosque (Scielo Chile) [4] |
| 2000 | n/a | $58,110 | BLS OEWS 2000 [8] |
| 2003 | 2,660 | $64,500 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [5] |
| 2004 | 2,970 | $65,530 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [5] |
| 2005 | 2,990 | $64,870 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [5] |
| 2006 | 2,630 | $64,430 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [5] |
| 2007 | 2,640 | $63,790 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [5] |
| 2008 | 2,450 | $62,140 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [5] |
| 2009 | 2,380 | $66,930 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [5] |
| 2010 | 2,410 | $78,290 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [5] |
| 2011 | 2,520 | $80,330 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [5] |
| 2012 | 2,490 | $81,930 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [5] |
| 2013 | 2,140 | $81,630 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [5] |
| 2014 | 1,850 | $84,090 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [5] |
| 2015 | 1,660 | $88,270 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [5] |
| 2016 | 1,750 | $85,880 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [5] |
| 2017 | 2,000 | $87,420 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [5] |
| 2018 | 2,070 | $86,900 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [5] |
| 2019 | 1,770 | $85,450 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [5] |
| 2020 | 1,460 | $87,400 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [5] |
| 2021 | 1,180 | $82,330 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [5] |
| 2022 | 1,270 | $96,500 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [5] |
| 2023 | 1,260 | $101,650 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [5] |
| 2024 | 1,310 | $100,830 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [5] |
| 2025 | 1,520 | $101,420 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [5] |

## Sources (90)

### Employment series

1. [Appalachian History — "First Forestry School in the USA" (Biltmore Forest School history, Carl Schenck, 1898 founding)](https://www.appalachianhistory.net/2019/05/first-forestry-school-in-usa.html), Appalachian History
2. [Society of American Foresters (via Encyclopedia.com) — SAF history: "Between 1900 and 1920, nearly thirty schools of forestry were established; new programs at a rate of six per decade through the 1940s-50s"](https://www.encyclopedia.com/environment/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/society-american-foresters), Encyclopedia.com / Society of American Foresters
3. [Journal of Forestry — Poudyal et al. (2015), "Undergraduate Enrollment in Natural Resource Programs in the United States: Trends, Drivers, and Implications" — documents 1970s enrollment peak and faculty expansion at NAUFRP-member institutions](https://academic.oup.com/jof/article/113/6/538/4599721), Journal of Forestry / Oxford Academic
4. [Bosque (Scielo Chile) — "The decline in forestry education enrollment: Some observations and opinions" (v.29 n.2, 2008) — documents post-1980 enrollment decline and unfilled faculty capacity across North American forestry programs](https://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0717-92002008000200001), Bosque (Scielo Chile)
5. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)

### Wage series

6. [AAUP — Faculty Compensation Survey historical archive (1930s land-grant faculty salary range): general science faculty average $2,000-$4,500 at state universities](https://www.aaup.org/issues-higher-education/faculty-employment/faculty-compensation-survey), American Association of University Professors
7. [AAUP — "Uncertain Times: Annual Report on the Economic Status of the Profession 2000-01" (contains historical salary trend data; 1970s faculty salary context)](https://www.aaup.org/reports-publications/2000-01salarysurvey), American Association of University Professors
8. [BLS OES 2000 national estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oes00nat.zip), Bureau of Labor Statistics
9. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
10. [BLS OEWS May 2024, national cross-industry estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

### Tool eras

11. [Appalachian History — "First Forestry School in the USA" (Biltmore curriculum: dendrology, botany, forest finance, practical measurement, 1898)](https://www.appalachianhistory.net/2019/05/first-forestry-school-in-usa.html), Appalachian History
12. [Yale School of the Environment — History (Yale Forest School founded 1900 by Pinchot and Graves; first professional graduate forestry program in the nation)](https://environment.yale.edu/forest-school/about/history), Yale School of the Environment
13. [NC State University Libraries SCRC — "Historical Context: The Rise of American Forestry" (forestry school expansion, land-grant programs, research methods evolution)](https://www.lib.ncsu.edu/scrc/forestry/background), NC State University Libraries
14. [Wikipedia — Landsat 1 (launched July 23, 1972, first operational satellite for earth resources observation; began satellite remote sensing era in forestry research)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landsat_1), Wikipedia
15. [Journal of Forestry — Poudyal et al. (2015), "Undergraduate Enrollment in Natural Resource Programs in the United States: Trends, Drivers, and Implications" (1970s peak enrollment and curriculum evolution in response to environmental movement)](https://academic.oup.com/jof/article/113/6/538/4599721), Journal of Forestry / Oxford Academic
16. [Esri ArcGIS Pro (GeoAI / Deep Learning) — historical context of ArcView and ArcGIS adoption in forestry education; industry-standard GIS platform in forestry faculty job postings (2025)](https://www.esri.com/en-us/geospatial-artificial-intelligence/overview), Esri
17. [Bosque (Scielo Chile) — "The decline in forestry education enrollment" (2008): GIS modernization cited as partial offset to enrollment decline; programs slow to integrate spatial tools lost market share to geography/environmental science](https://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0717-92002008000200001), Bosque (Scielo Chile)
18. [Google Earth Engine — cloud geospatial analysis platform that incorporates LiDAR-derived products alongside optical imagery; free for research and education; standard research platform for landscape-scale forest change and canopy analysis (2025)](https://earthengine.google.com/), Google
19. [Google SpeciesNet (Apr 2026) — open-source AI model trained on 65M labelled camera-trap images; approximately 2,500 animal categories; integrated into The Nature Conservancy Animl platform; adopted by Idaho Dept of Fish and Game](https://blog.google/company-news/outreach-and-initiatives/sustainability/speciesnet-open-source-ai-wildlife/), Google
20. [BirdNET (Cornell Lab of Ornithology + Chemnitz Univ of Technology) — deep-learning bioacoustics model identifying 6,000+ bird species from audio; open-source; used for passive acoustic monitoring and taught in wildlife management courses](https://birdnet.cornell.edu/), Cornell Lab of Ornithology
21. [Federal Reserve FEDS Notes — "Educational Exposure to Generative AI" (Feb 2026): Life, Physical, and Social Science Teachers in above-average AI-exposure band for postsecondary education](https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/notes/feds-notes/educational-exposure-to-generative-artificial-intelligence-20250226.html), Federal Reserve

### Forecasts and exposure studies

22. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 25-1043 Forestry and conservation science teachers, postsecondary (2025: 1.8 thousand; 2035: 1.9 thousand; +2.8%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=25-1043&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
23. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 25-1043.00, human-rated β 0.424)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

24. [Appalachian History — "First Forestry School in the USA" (Biltmore Forest School 1898; Yale Forest School 1900)](https://www.appalachianhistory.net/2019/05/first-forestry-school-in-usa.html), Appalachian History
25. [Yale School of the Environment — History (Yale Forest School founding 1900; Pinchot faculty 1903-1936; first four USFS chiefs)](https://environment.yale.edu/forest-school/about/history), Yale School of the Environment
26. [Wikipedia — McSweeney-McNary Act of 1928 (forest research authorization; created USDA experiment station network; repealed and replaced by the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Research Act of 1978)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McSweeney-McNary_Act_of_1928), Wikipedia
27. [Society of American Foresters (via Encyclopedia.com) — SAF history: accreditation program began 1935; governed forestry curriculum standards continuously since](https://www.encyclopedia.com/environment/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/society-american-foresters), Encyclopedia.com / Society of American Foresters
28. [Journal of Forestry — Poudyal et al. (2015), "Undergraduate Enrollment in Natural Resource Programs in the United States" (1970s peak enrollment; 1980s-1990s decline; NEPA and environmental movement as demand driver)](https://academic.oup.com/jof/article/113/6/538/4599721), Journal of Forestry / Oxford Academic
29. [Google Earth Engine — cloud geospatial analysis platform: available to academic researchers from approximately 2010; standard tool in remote sensing modules at forestry programs worldwide (2025)](https://earthengine.google.com/), Google

### Predecessors & successors

30. [Appalachian History — "First Forestry School in the USA" (Schenck and Pinchot: practitioners who became the first forestry educators; the practitioner-to-professor path was the dominant entry in the early decades)](https://www.appalachianhistory.net/2019/05/first-forestry-school-in-usa.html), Appalachian History
31. [BLS OOH — Postsecondary Teachers: doctoral degree plus research experience is the standard entry path for tenure-track forestry and natural-resources faculty at research universities](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/education-training-and-library/postsecondary-teachers.htm), Bureau of Labor Statistics
32. [O\*NET 25-1043.00 — pivot to conservation scientist (19-1031) documented as natural transition for faculty with active field research programs and relationships with USDA NRCS, USFS, and land trusts](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/25-1043.00), O\*NET / BLS

### Present-day analysis

- [O\*NET 30.3 — Forestry and Conservation Science Teachers, Postsecondary (25-1043.00)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/25-1043.00), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-24
- [BLS OES May 2025 — Forestry and Conservation Science Teachers, Postsecondary (25-1043): median annual wage $86,300](https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes251043.htm), accessed 2026-05-24
- [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook — Postsecondary Teachers (2024–2034, +7% projected growth, much faster than average)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/education-training-and-library/postsecondary-teachers.htm), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Federal Reserve FEDS Notes — Educational Exposure to Generative AI (Feb 2026): Life, Physical, and Social Science Teachers in above-average AI-exposure band for postsecondary education](https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/notes/feds-notes/educational-exposure-to-generative-artificial-intelligence-20250226.html), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Google SpeciesNet (Apr 2026) — open-source AI model trained on 65M labelled camera-trap images; ~2,500 animal categories; integrated into The Nature Conservancy Animl platform and AddaxAI; adopted by Idaho Dept of Fish and Game](https://blog.google/company-news/outreach-and-initiatives/sustainability/speciesnet-open-source-ai-wildlife/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [MegaDetector (Microsoft AI for Earth / open-source) — AI model detecting animals, people, and vehicles in camera-trap images; deployed at 30+ conservation organizations; taught in wildlife monitoring courses at forestry schools](https://github.com/agentmorris/MegaDetector), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Google Earth Engine — cloud geospatial analysis platform with ML classifiers for land cover, forest canopy mapping, deforestation monitoring; free for research and education; standard tool in remote sensing modules at forestry programs (2025)](https://earthengine.google.com/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Esri ArcGIS Pro (GeoAI / Deep Learning) — industry-standard GIS with deep learning for habitat classification, stand delineation, and invasive species mapping; Hot Technology per O\*NET; #1 GIS tool in forestry faculty job postings (2025)](https://www.esri.com/en-us/geospatial-artificial-intelligence/overview), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Pano AI — AI-powered wildfire early detection via fixed ridgeline cameras; detected 725 wildfires in 2025 season; 17 US states; 50M+ acres; used by USFS, BLM, state DNRs; emerging in wildfire-management curricula](https://www.pano.ai/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [BirdNET (Cornell Lab of Ornithology + Chemnitz Univ of Technology) — deep-learning bioacoustics model identifying 6,000+ bird species from audio; open-source; used for passive acoustic monitoring and taught in wildlife management courses at forestry schools](https://birdnet.cornell.edu/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [iNaturalist — citizen science biodiversity platform with AI species identification; 100M+ research-grade observations; Google.org $1.5M grant (2025) for generative-AI-improved identification; standard tool in undergraduate field ecology courses](https://www.inaturalist.org/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Gradescope — AI-assisted grading: 30–50% grading time reduction; AI-assisted answer grouping for written field reports and lab data analysis; 3,000+ institutions (2025)](https://www.gradescope.com/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Elicit — AI research synthesis: 138M+ academic papers; up to 80% literature-review time reduction; applicable to Forest Ecology and Management, Ecological Applications, and related journals (2025)](https://elicit.com/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [OpenAI — ChatGPT Edu: CSU system-wide deployment (460k+ users across 23 campuses, Feb 2025); documented use in STEM course material drafting across postsecondary institutions](https://campustechnology.com/articles/2025/02/05/california-state-university-launches-systemwide-chatgpt-edu-deployment.aspx), accessed 2026-05-24

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.