but i’m not sure of what I wanna do after my bachelor…i’m afraid that doing geology is going to “keep me in a box”. What if I wanna do something else after? Maybe still related to the field but I don’t have the skills to do so? I always read about people saying that geology is better because you can 100% find a job, but i’m not even sure about what job I even wanna do! I need help choosing

Any insight is appreciated, especially if you're able to identify the use-case or prevalence of a given language in relation to the specific job you're referring to.

Also any insight on general skills which may not be covered in our environmental degrees is also welcome

Thanks

I have been working as an environmental scientist for the last two years and some change, since I graduated in 2024. I am currently in VA in a decently HCOL city, and have been doing about a 80/20 split of field work to office work. Primarily my works centers around groundwater , soil , and air sampling on former petroleum sites , dry cleaners , landfills , etc. I do think I have learned a lot and gained a ton of valuable experience , and have definitely grown as a professional over the last two years. I have also gotten a fair amount of experience writing reports , tabulating data and using this data to compile figures.

I have recently been offered a job opportunity that is a 14,000$ pay increase. I would be sacrificing my hourly OT pay of time and a half, and would be leaving a place where I feel comfortable, but often times taken for granted. I am leaning towards the salary position and the pay increase, as I have heard company hopping is unfortunately one of the best ways to increase your value over the years. I also feel as if I have gotten too comfortable at my current position , and am ready to put myself in an uncomfortable situation again, as I feel as if I am ready to learn more.

I want to pursue a bachelors / masters of engineering in the near future , and have already spoken to nearby universities as well as my Alma matter. Both companies have been supportive of this, just wanted to throw this in there.

Would you guys recommend the salaried pay increase , although it may come with more work ? I am currently averaging about 40-50 hours per week , but have heard it can go up a decent bit from there in consulting.

Thanks for the help , happy to answer any questions !

Hello everyone! A bit of background on me (25), I have been intentionally transitioning into the geospatial field over the last year. More specifically with GeoML and working with geospatial and spatiotemporal data. I've built my skills by doing projects (fire prediction, fire area mapping, crop yield prediction) and worked on an open source project as well most recently. I've learnt some QGIS and mapping as well. I've been out of a job for a while (18 months) during this transition and upskilling. I've previously worked as a data analyst in retail and interned as well with a bit of ML/AI work. I intend on doing a master's degree and apply hopefully for Fall 2027 if all goes well. My target being geoML or geo data science. I have a bachelor's in engineering as well.

I'm now looking to enter the professional space for some more experience. I need help deciding between my opportunities, not all concrete as of now.

I have one internship opportunity from a startup that works with climate risk. They're doing good work but the role is more of a bridge between the customer facing team and the engineering/rnd team (who actually work on the climate risk model). I've clarified several times about the work and even though there is space to pick up extra work and go out of my way to maybe do some ML work but not at the cost of my defined tasks (them being mostly consultant-type work designing workflows, making decks, reports, etc). It's not a bad opportunity at all but it's not exactly the direction I was heading tech wise. I've asked for a bit of time to give them a confirmation. It's a good exit from being out of a job and is technically entering the space of climate/sustainability but must it come at the cost of what I really want to work on that could potentially boost my master's profile?

Secondly I am in talks with a different company for a remote role. They work with digital twins systems and work with spatial data. Again, the role here is more on the implementation side of things even though there is a technical aspect to it with working with spatial data. It also comes with some caveats about deductions-things I'd have to take care of on my own. This is a full time role and more technical than the previous one but this is a contractual role. I've only gone through one round so it's hard to tell how things will go but this work is definitely something that interests me.

I am still actively looking for something more aligned to me and something I can learn as a beginner in the field. But what's the best path to take here? A sure shot at entering the field but in a role I'm not so excited about (has potential growth but highly unsure) or bet on something more aligned to me? (second one and maybe more) Or am I thinking too much too far about this and just take what I can get?

Hey everyone I'm 21 and currently pursuing a BA in English. I've recently become interested in sustainability as a career, particularly roles like Sustainability Officer or Sustainability Manager in India.

I don't have a background in environmental science, so I'd love to hear from people working in this field.

Can I pursue a master's degree or postgraduate diploma in environmental studies after my BA? Is it possible to start gaining relevant experience now, even before I graduate?

I'm particularly interested in hands-on work, fieldwork, visiting sites, managing projects, and solving real-world environmental problems. I'd prefer not to spend most of my working hours sitting in front of a laptop.

I'd also love to understand the salary growth, career opportunities, and long-term financial stability this field can offer in India.

If you work in sustainability or know someone who does, I'd really appreciate your advice. What would you recommend to someone starting from scratch?

I work in a sustainability role right now, but my undergrad degree is not in a science. I've been very lucky to find work in an interdisciplinary niche that overlaps with my undergrad degree, but due to a lack of a higher degree in sustainability/science, it seems like I've hit a fairly noticeable growth ceiling in terms of pay. My work is effectively "climate communication."

When looking at other roles, both in and out of my niche, there are significant pay bumps that I'd be applicable for if I had a Masters in Environmental Science/Sustainability, but it would probably cost me about $20,000 to get the degree.

I've been looking at online PSM programs that I could do while at this job. Does anyone have any thoughts and advice on this? Thank!

Hi I am in my first semester of bs environmental science and i am having second guess about this field and my future I want brutal truth that is it worth it or should i switch to something else i do not want to waste money or my time because i am from third world country i know there are no chances here and i will have to move out for better opportunities but what if i do all that in end to be disappointed or when its too late

Hi everyone!

I am an senior undergraduate student majoring in BA Environmental Studies, and I am hoping to get some advice on how I can use my spare time to build my skills and strengthen my resume.

I have some experience with ArcGIS and fieldwork, although I wouldn’t consider myself particularly experienced in either area yet. Now, I am currently doing a co-op placement that isn’t directly related to my major and is mainly administrative. However, I think it would still be a valuable opportunity to develop some transferable soft skills.

Since I’m working full-time and don’t have much coursework to worry about at the moment, I have some free time in the evenings and on weekends. I am thinking that maybe I can use this time more productively.

The main challenge is that I truely don't know what I want to pursue in the long term. I have been browsing different career paths, including environmental consulting, environmental education & outreach, and other areas that I haven’t had much exposure to yet.

At the moment, I’m thinking about teaching myself QGIS to build on my existing GIS experience. Some of my schoolmates have taken certifications such as the CFA Sustainable Investing Certificate, but I am not particularly interested in the finance or investment side of sustainability.

For those of you working in the environmental field, I would really appreciate your advice on a few questions: What practical skills would be worth developing in my spare time? or are there any certifications or short courses you would recommend for someone interested in environmental consulting. (I am interested in sustainability and wildlife conservation)

Any kind of advice or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

I 22f will graduate this December. Have been applying to jobs every week and am getting rejected hand over foot. Starting to panic, any advice

I got a degree in conservation hoping to work in wildlife conservation but got discouraged by the lack of stability and career options when trying to get a job post grad. right now i’m working in a totally unrelated business operations role. i found i enjoy operations coordination type work but would rather work in an industry related to my degree. i thought renewable energy might be a more stable / better paying option. what does work in this sector actually look like? are my current qualifications enough for an entry level position or do i need more hard science background or something else?

Hi! I've been hunting for jobs, since my PhD position lost funding over the winter, largely in the Portland, OR area, but also for remote/hybrid gigs in Seattle/Bay Area if they don't require a ton of travel. I feel like I'm sort of at a loss after 8 months of searching for a progressively wider and more tangential net of roles and organizational function, and was wondering if anyone has any advice? I've been running the gambit of every local, regional, and national. job board in the broad green/enviro job sphere, reaching out to folks from my MS program, and attending local chapter of alumni association events, as well as reaching out to local and national recruiters, but nothing has quite stuck. Thanks!

I graduated in 2025 with an M.S. in Environmental Justice and Ecosystem Science (UM) and in 2022 with a B.S. from MSU. I’ve spent over a year searching and have applied to 100+ jobs in Michigan (state, local government, universities, labs, consulting). Most replies say they chose a more qualified candidate.

My experience includes a PFAS and mining policy research fellowship, a state service commission fellowship, a campus sustainability internship, soil and sediment lab work, and proficiency in R and Microsoft Office.

I’m discouraged and would really appreciate gentle, constructive advice

I’m having a hard time right now, so kindness means a lot. Thank you for reading.

For at least a week, maybe longer the Chicagoland Environmental Network website, along with their job board has not been loading for me. https://www.chicagoenvironment.org/jobintern/index.cfm is the link. Wondering if anyone else has encountered this or knows anything about it.

I want to get into this career and been applying to jobs like this. If you're in this field, what does your day to day look like? What do you like about it the most? What are the most challenging parts?

From what I'm seeing online alot of duties are:

• water rights administration
• raw water operations/diversions
• water supply operations
• reservoir and dam stability

Hi, I’m looking for a part time remote job or offering consulting services. I have a background in env. science with focus in climate change and the energy sector. 9 years of experience working in the field and have my masters degree

Any leads would be greatly appreciated!

Hello! I am currently a student in college and looking into switching my major to either environmental studies or environmental management. I was wondering if anyone that has done similar studies can tell me about the job opportunities it allowed?

I already have my bachelors outside of environmental but I always had a passion in geology and hydrology. My university recently started a watershed management certificate program and something called geotechnical applications but when I typed it in on Google it translates to geotechnical engineering but this isn’t engineering seems more computer software based. Wondering if I can pivot into environmental groundwork around the water industry with such a certificate

Is getting this degree even worth it with the way the country's going right now? Im currently enrolled at SNHU for an environmental science degree, thinking about transferring to University of Florida Online since its cheaper, but I'm just worried I'll be wasting time and money getting this degree if I end up unable to find a career once I finish, or find one that pays me a salary I'd be comfortable with. I was looking at psychology as a possible back up plan if this degree path doesn't seem reasonably worth the time and effort.

Any advise on this career field or others that might be better for salary, comfort of life, and enjoyment woild be appreciated as well as any other insights on career opportunities and possibilities. Thanks!