Best Forester programs in Washington, ranked by enrollment
Manage public and private forested lands for economic, recreational, and conservation purposes.
12 schools in Washington run programs that feed this job, graduating 112 people a year. The job pays a median of $78,460 in Washington across about 950 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Washington that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
4 programs in Washington that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Washington (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 Washington page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 03.0101In Washington → | 64 | 57.1% | 9 | $34,020 | $23,032 |
| 2 | Forest Sciences and Biologymain feeder CIP 03.0502In Washington → | 26 | 23.2% | 1 | $42,109 | $21,842 |
| 3 | Forestry, Generalmain feeder CIP 03.0501In Washington → | 15 | 13.4% | 2 | $42,109 | $21,842 |
| 4 | CIP 03.0201In Washington → | 7 | 6.2% | 4 | $37,946 | $24,125 |
Top 12 schools in Washington
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 1 of the 12 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Washington - Seattle Campus Seattle, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 26 | Forest Sciences and Biology | — | 85% | — | 39% |
| 2 | Grays Harbor College Aberdeen, WA Public · 2 feeder programs | 17 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | — | 39% | — | — |
| 3 | Green River College Auburn, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 15 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | — | 39% | — | — |
| 4 | Washington State University Pullman, WA Public · 3 feeder programs | 14 | Forestry, General | — | 60% | — | 87% |
| 5 | Cascadia College Bothell, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 11 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | — | 32% | — | — |
| 6 | Skagit Valley College Mount Vernon, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 10 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | — | 36% | — | — |
| 7 | Peninsula College Port Angeles, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | — | 37% | — | — |
| 8 | Bastyr University Kenmore, WA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 4 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | — | — | — | — |
| 9 | Western Washington University Bellingham, WA Public · 2 feeder programs | 4 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | $30,899 | 65% | — | 93% |
| 10 | Central Washington University Ellensburg, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy, General | — | 54% | — | 91% |
| 11 | Seattle Pacific University Seattle, WA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy, General | — | 62% | $24,653 | 83% |
| 12 | Wenatchee Valley College Wenatchee, WA Public · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Natural Resources/Conservation, General | — | 43% | — | — |
All 12 schools in Washington
Every school in Washington 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 Washington - Seattle Campus | Seattle | Public | 26 | 1 |
| Grays Harbor College | Aberdeen | Public | 17 | 2 |
| Green River College | Auburn | Public | 15 | 1 |
| Washington State University | Pullman | Public | 14 | 3 |
| Cascadia College | Bothell | Public | 11 | 1 |
| Skagit Valley College | Mount Vernon | Public | 10 | 1 |
| Peninsula College | Port Angeles | Public | 7 | 1 |
| Bastyr University | Kenmore | Private not-for-profit | 4 | 1 |
| Western Washington University | Bellingham | Public | 4 | 2 |
| Central Washington University | Ellensburg | Public | 2 | 1 |
| Seattle Pacific University | Seattle | Private not-for-profit | 1 | 1 |
| Wenatchee Valley College | Wenatchee | Public | 1 | 1 |
What foresters earn in Washington
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $76,400. Washington pays above the national figure.
Concentrated here: Washington employs more of this job per worker than the U.S. average.
Metro areas in Washington
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 Foresters page.
How to become a Forester
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Washington
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 9 majors mapped to Foresters9 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 03.0101Natural Resources/Conservation, General
- 03.0201Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy, General
- 03.0501Forestry, General
- 03.0502Forest Sciences and Biology
- 03.0506Forest Management/Forest Resources Management
- 03.0508Urban Forestry
- 03.0509Wood Science and Wood Products/Pulp and Paper Technology/Technician
- 03.0510Forest Resources Production and Management
- 03.0599Forestry, Other
Common questions
Answers for people weighing foresters programs in Washington.
What degree do you need to become a Forester?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Natural Resources/Conservation, General, which awarded 64 degrees in Washington in 2024-25, 57.1% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Forester?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 4 programs to this occupation. The largest are Natural Resources Conservation and Research, Forestry, Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy. Together they graduate about 112 people a year in Washington.
How much do foresters earn in Washington?+
The median is $78,460 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 2.7% above the U.S. median of $76,400. 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 foresters growing?+
BLS projects a +1.2% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, little or no change, with roughly 1,100 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Washington?+
12 institutions in Washington 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 foresters work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Forester, Area Forester, Silviculturist, Timber Sales Administrator (Timber Sales Admin) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 19-1032.
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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