Wildlife Sciences

About this degree

In this area of emphasis, students learn how to manage healthy populations of wildlife. Whether it’s understanding breeding cycles of salamanders, looking at ways to manage the damage caused by feral hogs, or managing an area to encourage deer or turkey populations, our students learn about the biological and ecological conditions required to maintain healthy animal populations.

This program is part of the Fisheries and Wildlife degree.

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What you will learn

Coursework for this area of emphasis recognizes that wildlife management is fundamentally a biological discipline requiring an understanding of organisms and their environments. As a result, we view the foundational disciplines of the Fisheries and Wildlife major as:

Organismal biology
Population biology and ecology
Ecosystems and habitat management

Because fisheries and wildlife management involves humans interacting with our natural resources, we also require that our students have an understanding of economic and natural resources policies and laws. We also feel it’s essential for our students to receive training in spatial and population modeling, verbal and written communication, and decision-making in order to become successful fisheries and wildlife biologists.

Other Academic Information

Other Programs Offered:

Students pursuing the wildlife sciences area of emphasis in the fisheries and wildlife major may be able to complete one or more of the following programs alongside the major.

Student Organizations

Employment Information

Possible Job Titles:

Wildlife biologist
Animal ecologist
Environmental consultant
Conservation biologist
Wildlife scientist

Employers:

Graduates of our wildlife sciences area of emphasis work in a variety of positions, including as wildlife biologists for federal or state agencies, managing private lands for public or private entities, or managing habitats for species of concern in the United States and around the world.

Research

General Research Information:

Wildlife sciences students have the opportunity to take part in a variety of research projects with faculty members. Some research is lab based while others include field work or even summer internships.