Who are we educating and what should they know? An assessment of forestry education in California

Abstract

We conducted a statewide survey of forestry employers and forestry students in three California universities to assess whether forestry degree programs are providing students with the knowledge and skills needed for contemporary forestry careers. The survey contained a comprehensive list of general skills and technical competencies identified from previous research. We clustered skills and knowledge items into five groups: professional skills, biophysical sciences, land management, human dimensions, and current issues. Results indicate that whereas forestry programs at California universities serve different student populations, student perceptions on the importance and preparation in their forestry education were similar. Both employers and students identified professional skills as most important, especially behaving professionally, ethically, and communicating effectively. However, using an importance-performance analysis, we found that land-management skills should be the focus of curriculum improvement.