Conservation Biology

Types of Degrees Conservation Biology Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many conservation biology graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	275
Master’s Degree	132
Doctor’s Degree	19
Basic Certificate	6
Graduate Certificate	1

What Conservation Biology Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to conservation biology and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.

Knowledge Areas for Conservation Biology Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

Skills for Conservation Biology Majors

When studying conservation biology, you’ll learn many skills that will help you be successful in a wide range of jobs - even those that do not require a degree in the field. The following is a list of some of the most common skills needed for careers associated with this major:

• Science - Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Abilities for Conservation Biology Majors

A major in conservation biology will prepare for your careers in which the following abilities are important:

• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Category Flexibility - The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.

What Can You Do With a Conservation Biology Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with conservation biology:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Molecular and Cellular Biologists	8.0%	$79,590

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Conservation Biology?

This major is dominated by women with about 65% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of conservation biology majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	12
Black or African American	5
Hispanic or Latino	13
White	216
International Students	2
Other Races/Ethnicities	27

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Conservation Biology, too. About 0.7% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Conservation Biology

Some careers associated with conservation biology require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

Find out what the typical degree level is for conservation biology careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	4.4%
Bachelor’s Degree	30.4%
Master’s Degree	13.0%
Doctoral Degree	21.7%
Post-Doctoral Training	30.4%

Online Conservation Biology Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	0	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	0	0
Bachelor’s Degree	8	1
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	13	1
Post-Master’s	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	4	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Conservation Biology

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to conservation biology.

Major	Number of Grads
Epidemiology	3,179
Marine Biology	2,368
Ecology	1,122
Evolutionary Biology	807
Environmental Biology	484
Other Ecology, Evolution & Systematics Biology	333
Evolutionary Biology	178
Aquatic Biology/Limnology	96
Epidemiology and Biostatistics	80
Population Biology	29
Biological Systematics	14

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020
• Image Credit: By Ernst Haeckel under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.