Can you really make a living working with birds? Yes!
Jobs involving birds are about as diverse as birds themselves. Some are short-term, lasting a few weeks to a few months. Those often include helping researchers gather data for scientific projects or doing internships at agencies, zoos, and conservation organizations. At OSU, we pride ourselves on how connected we are with the community, agencies, and other colleges and universities. All of our Fisheries and Wildlife Science students do internships during their time here.
With the FLOCK, we also work carefully to help you plan your course schedules so you can do even more internships. Experience in the field and making connections with prospective employers are very important as they build your competitiveness in the job market after you graduate. We have so many ornithologists at OSU that we are always looking for help, which provides great opportunities to gain experience in bird observation, data collection, data management, even writing up reports and publications. Check the People pages to see who we are and what we are currently doing with birds.
Longer-term jobs range from positions as wildlife biologists and ornithologists at agencies, non-governmental organizations (think The Nature Conservancy, private consulting firms, etc), and colleges and universities. At OSU, we have the connections you need and provide the training you will use as you enter the job market.
But, one does not need a degree in Fisheries and Wildlife to participate in the FLOCK! OSU has great programs all over campus. Maybe you love music or fine arts or engineering or really want to be an architect, while keeping your toes in the birding waters? No problem. Come join us!
To learn more, check our Department Careers page.
Some other resources about bird careers are available at eBird's Young Birder's Network, including some interesting video interviews.