Best Forest programs in Illinois, ranked by enrollment
Provide technical assistance regarding the conservation of soil, water, forests, or related natural resources.
18 schools in Illinois run programs that feed this job, graduating 377 people a year. The job pays a median of $52,790 in Illinois across about 820 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Illinois that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
4 programs in Illinois that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Illinois (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Illinois page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 03.0104In Illinois → | 326 | 86.5% | 16 | $34,020 | $23,032 |
| 2 | CIP 03.0501In Illinois → | 39 | 10.3% | 1 | $42,109 | $21,842 |
| 3 | CIP 03.0101In Illinois → | 10 | 2.7% | 1 | $34,020 | $23,032 |
| 4 | CIP 03.0511In Illinois → | 2 | 0.5% | 1 | $42,109 | $21,842 |
Top 18 schools in Illinois
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 6 of the 18 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Illinois Urbana - Champaign Champaign, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 116 | Environmental Science | $31,369 | 85% | — | 42% |
| 2 | Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 78 | Environmental Science | $30,797 | 73% | $33,454 | 82% |
| 3 | Southern Illinois University - Carbondale Carbondale, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 39 | Forestry, General | $35,398 | 62% | — | 87% |
| 4 | Northwestern University Evanston, IL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 21 | Environmental Science | — | 95% | $14,799 | 8% |
| 5 | Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Edwardsville, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 21 | Environmental Science | — | 57% | — | 97% |
| 6 | Illinois State University Normal, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 19 | Environmental Science | — | 65% | — | 88% |
| 7 | University of Illinois Springfield Springfield, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 16 | Environmental Science | — | 53% | — | 86% |
| 8 | DePaul University Chicago, IL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 13 | Environmental Science | $26,381 | 68% | $28,141 | 76% |
| 9 | Lewis and Clark Community College Godfrey, IL Public · 2 feeder programs | 12 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | — | 44% | — | — |
| 10 | Wheaton College Wheaton, IL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 12 | Environmental Science | — | 85% | $23,461 | 87% |
| 11 | Knox College Galesburg, IL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 11 | Environmental Science | $28,757 | 68% | $24,240 | 71% |
| 12 | Eureka College Eureka, IL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 4 | Environmental Science | — | 42% | $22,446 | 85% |
| 13 | Bradley University Peoria, IL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Environmental Science | — | 76% | $21,768 | 77% |
| 14 | Lewis University Romeoville, IL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Environmental Science | — | 67% | $17,632 | 71% |
| 15 | Northeastern Illinois University Chicago, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Environmental Science | $30,490 | 22% | — | 75% |
| 16 | Western Illinois University Macomb, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Environmental Science | — | 45% | — | 71% |
| 17 | College of Lake County Grayslake, IL Public · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Forest Technology/Technician | — | 37% | — | — |
| 18 | Monmouth College Monmouth, IL Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Environmental Science | — | 65% | $16,821 | 91% |
All 18 schools in Illinois
Every school in Illinois with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Illinois Urbana - Champaign | Champaign | Public | 116 | 1 |
| Loyola University Chicago | Chicago | Private not-for-profit | 78 | 1 |
| Southern Illinois University - Carbondale | Carbondale | Public | 39 | 1 |
| Northwestern University | Evanston | Private not-for-profit | 21 | 1 |
| Southern Illinois University Edwardsville | Edwardsville | Public | 21 | 1 |
| Illinois State University | Normal | Public | 19 | 1 |
| University of Illinois Springfield | Springfield | Public | 16 | 1 |
| DePaul University | Chicago | Private not-for-profit | 13 | 1 |
| Lewis and Clark Community College | Godfrey | Public | 12 | 2 |
| Wheaton College | Wheaton | Private not-for-profit | 12 | 1 |
| Knox College | Galesburg | Private not-for-profit | 11 | 1 |
| Eureka College | Eureka | Private not-for-profit | 4 | 1 |
| Bradley University | Peoria | Private not-for-profit | 3 | 1 |
| Lewis University | Romeoville | Private not-for-profit | 3 | 1 |
| Northeastern Illinois University | Chicago | Public | 3 | 1 |
What forest and conservation technicians earn in Illinois
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $54,560. Illinois pays below the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in Illinois
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Forest and Conservation Technicians page.
How to become a Forest
Job zone 3 of 5 · SVP 6.0 to < 7.0- Typical entry education
- Associate's degree
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Illinois
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 6 majors mapped to Forest and Conservation Technicians6 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 03.0101Natural Resources/Conservation, General
- 03.0104Environmental Science
- 03.0501Forestry, General
- 03.0510Forest Resources Production and Management
- 03.0511Forest Technology/Technician
- 03.0599Forestry, Other
Common questions
Answers for people weighing forest and conservation technicians programs in Illinois.
What degree do you need to become a Forest?+
Associate's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Environmental Science, which awarded 326 degrees in Illinois in 2024-25, 86.5% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Forest?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 4 programs to this occupation. The largest are Natural Resources Conservation and Research, Forestry. Together they graduate about 377 people a year in Illinois.
How much do forest and conservation technicians earn in Illinois?+
The median is $52,790 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 3.2% below the U.S. median of $54,560. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for forest and conservation technicians growing?+
BLS projects a -3.2% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 3,900 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Illinois?+
18 institutions in Illinois reported graduates from at least one of the 4 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do forest and conservation technicians work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Forestry Aide, Forest Technician, Resource Technician, Forestry Technician (Forestry Tech) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 19-4071.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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