Your degree in Urban Forestry

Skills you'll develop

While studying Urban Forestry, you’re developing interdisciplinary skills to plan and manage urban green-spaces and ecosystems for human welfare, ecological health, and the protection of cities’ support systems. You’ll develop important ways of thinking that can lead us to a more sustainable future.

These skills may include:

  • Green-space planning and design methods
  • Forest and green-space management
  • Smart data, modelling and visualization
  • Community engagement and consultations
  • Analyzing access to greenspaces and equity issues
  • Understanding how social, economic, and political systems affect biophysical systems
  • Understanding of urban ecology and management, including ecosystem services, wildlife, and wetlands
  • Developing a systems understanding of climate change and environmental issues
  • Technical skills in geographic information systems (GIS), statistics, and computer programming
  • Understand the research, theory and principles of natural resources conservation
  • Developing and delivering effective presentations for a variety of audiences
  • Technical report writing

Career possibilities

Career opportunities vary widely across a range of fields including urban forest, climate change and sustainability consulting, urban forest management, arboriculture, research, education, urban planning, landscape architecture, and others. Upon graduation, many students can apply to become an International Certified Arborist.

There are many career paths that can combine your academics, skills and competencies, and experience with your different interests. See the job titles below for ideas, but note that some career options may require further education or training.

Visit the National Occupational Classification website to research basic requirements and responsibilities of jobs in your field.

  • Arborist
  • Architect
  • City forester
  • Conservationist
  • Consulting arborist/urban forester
  • Ecotourism manager
  • Environmental educator
  • Ethnobotanist
  • Green infrastructure planner
  • Landscape architect
  • Land use planner
  • Municipal arborist
  • Natural resources consultant
  • Non-profit director
  • Parks and recreation manager
  • Park naturalist
  • Parks technician
  • Planning technician
  • Policy analyst
  • Researcher
  • Sustainability consultant
  • Tree risk/health assessor
  • Urban greenspace designer
  • Urban forestry planner
  • Urban planner

Make the most of your degree

Your experiences will open doors to new opportunities and help clarify your understanding of your values and interests.

Build your network

Employers often hire people they know, so help them get to know you! You can build your network through clubs, classes, informational interviews, and more. There are so many ways to make connections and find mentors.

The professional associations below are also great resources for meeting people, learning about specific industries, and exploring job and volunteer opportunities. Most have reduced membership rates for students and new grads.

Connect with alumni on LinkedIn

Find UBC Bachelor of Urban Forestry graduates on LinkedIn to learn about where they’re working, and their career and academic paths.

More information

From your Forestry degree, you’ll develop skills and experiences that can translate into many career paths. Check out other things you can do with your Forestry degree.

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