i was thinking about not going to med school and becoming a wildlife biologist... what is the average pay and work day for something like a field biologist
Go to med school. Then you could make enough $$ to really make difference in the wildlife and ecology movement. I went to purdue to be a wildlife biologist. We had guest speakers. One said there were enough people with degrees in it, that were out of work to fill all the jobs. I switched to engineering. i have been able to support many wildlife causes that I would not have on a starving biologists pay. I help at a raptor rehab center that is located on a lake where I live.
If you want to get a permanent, decent-paying job, you'll definitely need an advanced degree. Most field biologist jobs are seasonal and temporary, and the pay varies hugely. Some expect you to essentially volunteer, and only give you a few hundred dollars a month for expenses. I'd say the average field job pays about $1400-$2000 a month for pretty much entry-level work. If you work for a consulting firm, you can earn up to $20/hr for basic field technician work. Full-time wildlife biologists with PhDs can easily make $60-80k per year.
The work day varies even more than the pay, and will completely depend on what you're doing. Bird work means early mornings, deer work means nights, and in general your hours will be not at all regular or predictable. It all depends on what the animals are doing.
Wildlife biology is a field you go into because you have a passion for it, not because you want to make a lot of money or have an easy life.
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Go to med school. Then you could make enough $$ to really make difference in the wildlife and ecology movement. I went to purdue to be a wildlife biologist. We had guest speakers. One said there were enough people with degrees in it, that were out of work to fill all the jobs. I switched to engineering. i have been able to support many wildlife causes that I would not have on a starving biologists pay. I help at a raptor rehab center that is located on a lake where I live.
If you want to get a permanent, decent-paying job, you'll definitely need an advanced degree. Most field biologist jobs are seasonal and temporary, and the pay varies hugely. Some expect you to essentially volunteer, and only give you a few hundred dollars a month for expenses. I'd say the average field job pays about $1400-$2000 a month for pretty much entry-level work. If you work for a consulting firm, you can earn up to $20/hr for basic field technician work. Full-time wildlife biologists with PhDs can easily make $60-80k per year.
The work day varies even more than the pay, and will completely depend on what you're doing. Bird work means early mornings, deer work means nights, and in general your hours will be not at all regular or predictable. It all depends on what the animals are doing.
Wildlife biology is a field you go into because you have a passion for it, not because you want to make a lot of money or have an easy life.
If you want an idea of jobs, check out this site:
http://wfsc.tamu.edu/jobboard/index.htm