Ecological careers in nature‐based non‐governmental organizations

Aplet, Greg; Corney, Jeffrey R.; Famolare, Lisa; Schwartz, Mark W.

doi:10.1002/fee.1509

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…In addition to research skills, transferable skills such as effective communication, adaptability, and persistency overlap across employment expectations in the science research sector (Aplet et al 2017, Klemow et al 2017, Dale 2018, Nuttle and Klemow 2018). Mostly, transferable skills are presumably what students should acquire before entering the workforce (Byers 2018, Dale 2018).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Many field‐related majors offer internships and laboratory courses to better prepare students for their chosen career path. There is also a general agreement that fieldwork provides skills and knowledge that cannot be learned in a classroom setting (Aplet et al 2017, Fleischner et al 2017, Byers 2018, O’Connell et al 2020, Morales et al 2020). However, while field programs at the undergraduate level have been offered for decades, they are often not required for graduation in a field‐related major.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Twenty‐first century employers expect that the scientists they hire will be involved in teamwork, community engagement, and collaboration with other disciplinary experts (Aplet et al 2017, Klemow et al 2017, Nuttle and Klemow 2018). To meet these expectations, integrating career counseling opportunities within the curriculum could overcome the challenges encountered by employers and new graduates (O’Connell et al 2020).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Toward Conceptualizing Student Outcomes in Undergraduate Field Programs and Employer Expectations for Field Positions

Alwin

Geleta

Mourad

2021

Bulletin Ecologic Soc America

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A key outcome of an effective undergraduate experience is for students to gain disciplinary knowledge and develop a range of skills and habits of mind that prepare them for career success. In 2018, the Ecological Society of America (ESA) entered into an agreement with the US Geological Survey (USGS) to recruit students and recent graduates and place them into field ecology/biology internship positions at research sites across the United States. This paper focuses on field research jobs and presents a literature review to gain an understanding of workforce development issues and preliminary perspectives on critical skills in which employers might be interested. This paper is based on a case study of one employer (USGS) and investigates the potential alignment between employer expectations, field training, and perceived student outcomes. To conceptualize new graduates’ readiness and employer expectations, we identified a set of skill categories sought by field research sites. We did this by analyzing the job descriptions available through the 2019 ESA/USGS Cooperative Summer Internship Program and prior literature. These categories were incorporated into a new post‐internship student survey that was used to collect data from students. We found a potential gap in some transferable skills in both fieldwork and office work expected by employers and those offered by undergraduate field training programs. This could be explored in future studies involving a more extensive set of employers who seek to hire students with field ecology/biology skills.

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