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Besides going to college, what steps do I need to take to become a zoologists?
I want to be a zoologists and help animals as best as I can. #college #animals
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5 answers
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Suddhasattwa’s Answer
Hi Rekale,
Its a very interesting field for those who love animals.
Most importantly apart from your college studying Zoology in your Bachelor / Master degree you must take additional courses in animal science, veterinary science, animal behavior, animal husbandry, and ecology to come closer to become a Zoologist.
Zoologists are basically biologists who study a variety of animal species. Those studies can include researching animal behaviors and characteristics, and how they interact with their ecosystems. Zoologists may be involved in research, animal management, or education.
Zoologists may specialize in a branch of the field that is concerned with a related group of animals, such as mammalogy (mammals), herpetology (reptiles), ichthyology (fish), or ornithology (birds). Zoologists may also specialize even further by concentrating on the study of a single species.
So you must have love for study of Zoology and complete atleast bachelor's degree to start applying for zoologist's job and later you can apply for Master's and doctorate degree (PHD) too.
As you said you want to help the animals as best as you can, so this could be a perfect field as more than just your education, it requires genuine love and care for animals to do the following activities:
Designing and conducting research projects and studies of animals
Studying the characteristics of animals and their behaviors
Collecting and analyzing biological data and specimens
Writing papers, reports, and articles that explain research findings
Ensuring animal welfare through various initiatives
Educating the public on animal welfare and wildlife conservation
Promoting conservation efforts
Assisting with captive breeding programs
So look for your bachelors degree in Zoology as major to start your dream journey.
All the best Rekale.
~Suddho
https://www.universities.com/find/ohio/best/zoology-animal-biology-degrees
https://www.thebalancecareers.com/zoologist-career-description-125939
Its a very interesting field for those who love animals.
Most importantly apart from your college studying Zoology in your Bachelor / Master degree you must take additional courses in animal science, veterinary science, animal behavior, animal husbandry, and ecology to come closer to become a Zoologist.
Zoologists are basically biologists who study a variety of animal species. Those studies can include researching animal behaviors and characteristics, and how they interact with their ecosystems. Zoologists may be involved in research, animal management, or education.
Zoologists may specialize in a branch of the field that is concerned with a related group of animals, such as mammalogy (mammals), herpetology (reptiles), ichthyology (fish), or ornithology (birds). Zoologists may also specialize even further by concentrating on the study of a single species.
So you must have love for study of Zoology and complete atleast bachelor's degree to start applying for zoologist's job and later you can apply for Master's and doctorate degree (PHD) too.
As you said you want to help the animals as best as you can, so this could be a perfect field as more than just your education, it requires genuine love and care for animals to do the following activities:
Designing and conducting research projects and studies of animals
Studying the characteristics of animals and their behaviors
Collecting and analyzing biological data and specimens
Writing papers, reports, and articles that explain research findings
Ensuring animal welfare through various initiatives
Educating the public on animal welfare and wildlife conservation
Promoting conservation efforts
Assisting with captive breeding programs
So look for your bachelors degree in Zoology as major to start your dream journey.
All the best Rekale.
~Suddho
Suddhasattwa recommends the following next steps:
Updated
Blake’s Answer
Hey Rekale,
I would recommend volunteering. This will allow you to start aligning what you're learning in school and possibly apply it to your volunteer situations.
Thanks,
Blake
I would recommend volunteering. This will allow you to start aligning what you're learning in school and possibly apply it to your volunteer situations.
Thanks,
Blake
Updated
Bashayir’s Answer
I'd consider volunteering at the local zoo, animal shelter in your city, consider doing an internship or volunteer work at the local veterinarian office, and any other organization that deals with animals, etc.
Updated
Cynthia’s Answer
Expand your skill set through technician jobs, internships, externships, workshops, courses, and volunteering in the area that interests you. Some skills that are useful to wildlife biologists include using a handheld GPS, QGIS or ArcGIS, occupancy modeling, using a map and compass, driving an ATV, being able to hike for long distances, wildlife capture and immobilization, plant identification, vegetative surveys, and radio telemetry. Take a look at these sites for a list of jobs and other opportunities:
https://wfscjobs.tamu.edu/job-board/
https://www.aza.org/jobs
https://wildlife.org/
https://www.centerforwildlifestudies.org/courses
https://www.conservationjobboard.com/category/wildlife-jobs
https://www.thesca.org/serve
I also suggest looking into labs at local universities that are studying certain animals or topics you are interested in and volunteer. You can help graduate students and professors with field or lab work to gain experience. Try to do some research while you are an undergraduate. That will look really impressive on your CV.
If you want to do research I highly recommend learning R. It is a free software that scientists and others use for statistical analysis, visualizing data, and cleaning and organizing data, among other things. It has a steep learning curve, but if you keep coding, you will get the hang of it. Personally, I like to use R Studio when using R because it is more user friendly to me. Here are the links to download R and R Studio.
https://www.r-project.org/
https://rstudio.com/
https://wfscjobs.tamu.edu/job-board/
https://www.aza.org/jobs
https://wildlife.org/
https://www.centerforwildlifestudies.org/courses
https://www.conservationjobboard.com/category/wildlife-jobs
https://www.thesca.org/serve
I also suggest looking into labs at local universities that are studying certain animals or topics you are interested in and volunteer. You can help graduate students and professors with field or lab work to gain experience. Try to do some research while you are an undergraduate. That will look really impressive on your CV.
If you want to do research I highly recommend learning R. It is a free software that scientists and others use for statistical analysis, visualizing data, and cleaning and organizing data, among other things. It has a steep learning curve, but if you keep coding, you will get the hang of it. Personally, I like to use R Studio when using R because it is more user friendly to me. Here are the links to download R and R Studio.
https://www.r-project.org/
https://rstudio.com/
Updated
Karen’s Answer
Hi Rekale! If there is a Zoo in your city or town they usually have volunteer opportunities for students where you can get hands on experience working with animals and connecting with people that have those types of jobs. If you can, use that as an opportunity to learn as much as you can about the field and the types of activities involved, to find out what you like doing. Also, if you find those types of programs online but they are not local or you are not able to participate, you can always reach out to those organizations to get college and career advice or mentoring opportunities, they are usually very happy to provide that. Best of luck!