Best Forest programs in Iowa, ranked by enrollment
Provide technical assistance regarding the conservation of soil, water, forests, or related natural resources.
14 schools in Iowa run programs that feed this job, graduating 216 people a year. The job pays a median of $52,000 in Iowa across about 380 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Iowa that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
2 programs in Iowa that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Iowa (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 Iowa page.
Top 14 schools in Iowa
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 3 of the 14 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iowa State University Ames, IA Public · 1 feeder programs | 60 | Environmental Science | $37,890 | 75% | — | 89% |
| 2 | University of Iowa Iowa City, IA Public · 1 feeder programs | 44 | Environmental Science | $35,650 | 75% | — | 84% |
| 3 | Upper Iowa University Fayette, IA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 25 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | $34,347 | 34% | $22,697 | 96% |
| 4 | Kirkwood Community College Cedar Rapids, IA Public · 1 feeder programs | 21 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | — | 43% | — | — |
| 5 | University of Northern Iowa Cedar Falls, IA Public · 1 feeder programs | 20 | Environmental Science | — | 68% | — | 93% |
| 6 | Drake University Des Moines, IA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 15 | Environmental Science | — | 74% | $28,855 | 64% |
| 7 | Simpson College Indianola, IA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Environmental Science | — | 63% | $20,710 | 86% |
| 8 | University of Dubuque Dubuque, IA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Environmental Science | — | 40% | $21,324 | 89% |
| 9 | Wartburg College Waverly, IA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 6 | Environmental Science | — | 64% | $20,228 | 76% |
| 10 | Ellsworth Community College Iowa Falls, IA Public · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | — | 38% | — | — |
| 11 | Dordt University Sioux Center, IA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Environmental Science | — | 70% | $24,569 | 68% |
| 12 | Mount Mercy University Cedar Rapids, IA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | — | 58% | $23,054 | 83% |
| 13 | Coe College Cedar Rapids, IA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Environmental Science | — | 66% | $18,153 | 64% |
| 14 | Cornell College Mount Vernon, IA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Environmental Science | — | 62% | $23,073 | 80% |
All 14 schools in Iowa
Every school in Iowa 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iowa State University | Ames | Public | 60 | 1 |
| University of Iowa | Iowa City | Public | 44 | 1 |
| Upper Iowa University | Fayette | Private not-for-profit | 25 | 1 |
| Kirkwood Community College | Cedar Rapids | Public | 21 | 1 |
| University of Northern Iowa | Cedar Falls | Public | 20 | 1 |
| Drake University | Des Moines | Private not-for-profit | 15 | 1 |
| Simpson College | Indianola | Private not-for-profit | 7 | 1 |
| University of Dubuque | Dubuque | Private not-for-profit | 7 | 1 |
| Wartburg College | Waverly | Private not-for-profit | 6 | 1 |
| Ellsworth Community College | Iowa Falls | Public | 5 | 1 |
| Dordt University | Sioux Center | Private not-for-profit | 2 | 1 |
| Mount Mercy University | Cedar Rapids | Private not-for-profit | 2 | 1 |
| Coe College | Cedar Rapids | Private not-for-profit | 1 | 1 |
| Cornell College | Mount Vernon | Private not-for-profit | 1 | 1 |
What forest and conservation technicians earn in Iowa
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $54,560. Iowa pays below the national figure.
Concentrated here: Iowa employs more of this job per worker than the U.S. average.
Metro areas in Iowa
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 Iowa
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 Iowa.
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 163 degrees in Iowa in 2024-25, 75.5% 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 2 programs to this occupation. The largest are Natural Resources Conservation and Research. Together they graduate about 216 people a year in Iowa.
How much do forest and conservation technicians earn in Iowa?+
The median is $52,000 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 4.7% 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 Iowa?+
14 institutions in Iowa reported graduates from at least one of the 2 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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