I am only a slayer of mature spikes that will never be anything more than a spike. No spike dares to walk out in front of me, I eat spikes for breakfast!

Took care of pigs and captive coyotes for the Texas A&M vet school to help pay my way there. Ended up getting a BS and MS in Wildlife Science there. Spent more time at South Dakota State. Trained to be a upland bird specialist, but spent too much time learning computers and statistics. Couldn't get a biologist job, so have been a database programmer and statistician for the state since getting out of school.

Got into Wildlife because I figured having a career that you love is better than having a job you tolerate, even if the money is worse. Looking back, I wish I had either gotten a computer programming degree. Just as interesting as wildlife mgmt, but with a CS degree, I could have made a killing when the internet was just starting. If you are rich, you can hunt as much as you want to.

Amos???? Where are you????

I have a question for you. Who's advice is more valuable to you as a student? Your professor's or someone who is making money in the profession you wish to enter?

Having a biology degree is great to get you hired, but it isn't going to stop you from getting fired if you don't produce the results that your landowner/lease owner want.

You are learning theory in school. Much of it is flawed and has no application on a micro scale in deer management.

If you try to apply the books you have read to a deer herd like a drone, you will cripple it. Hell, the person hiring you could manage out of a book... employers, for the most part, can read too.

Be objective. Approach land, deer and deer herds with your eyes, ears, and brain open.

Didn't see this until after I posted. Uhh... yeah... People calling out intelligence and education etc etc... fun thread.

That's just the deer biz though...

I've got my little clique with a few other folks... we do things our way (and still disagree with each other)... don't call anyone idiots... don't get too mad at anyone... just want to be left alone and do our thing...

How are you supposed to bounce ideas off of someone if they are unable to think outside the box and already know all the answers... ????

Agree... there are good results on many different management styles...

Even on the spike debate....

To each their own...Except those with deaf ears...

I have a Criminal Justice degree. I am a former Game Warden, and now a private wildlife consultant. In my profession, I have met many recent graduates holding wildlife degrees. I know these graduates mainly because they were able to talk their way into a ranch wildlife management position. The landowner would later realize that the recent graduate was ill-prepared to handle the job. I would then be contracted to come in, take over and clean up the mess. I don't blame the recent graduates, I blame the professors that tell these students that they are ready and able to tackle such an endeavor. On the other hand, I know many Certified Wildlife Biologists that don't know, nor care, about whitetail deer. Their speciality may be butterflies or horny toads. Degrees and certifications are great, but real life experience is where you prove your value and worth.

KWood forgot to tell you best of luck in your studies, hope you can land a good job somewhere after you finish up.

Thanks rifleman. This topic taught me some things.

I also attended Tarleton back in the 90's. I, too, had Dr. Fulton and yes, he had a few quirky ideas. As I remember it, we wildlife majors spent more time on Ostrich and Emu ranches than we did anywhere else and listening about "True Blue East Texas Honky Tonks".I, myself, did not get much out of Tarleton's Wildlife degree. I didn't realize how little I knew until I interned on the Faith Ranch. When I was finished with my internship, I was so embarassed by how little I knew, I didn't even look for a wildlife job. I picked up the newspaper and found a job as a USDA produce inspector. That was short lived. Long story short, I went back to Tarleton and received my Master's in Biology. But, once again, when I got out, I realized again how little I knew. I guess the point of my story is that no matter what your field of study, or how long you stay in school; You really don't know much until you learn to apply what you've learned. It is during the application process that you encounter glitches and problems that did not arise in class. I've met a lot of folks in this field (none on this website, as I'm pretty new here) that have a big head. I don't understand why. My advice to you, or anyone else, would be to be humble and keep your eyes open and your mouth shut for the first few years. Absorb everything you can. If you form an opinion, keep it to yourself unless your asked. I now work for the USDA-NRCS and love my job. I get to instruct landowners on farming, ranching,wildlife mngt, brush control, pond mngt, grazing, prescribed burns, grass planting, etc....It is basically what I always wanted to do. Good pay (especially when everyone else is looking for a job) , great retirement, not labor intensive, great hours and holidays, etc... If you are a natural resource major, I would start with the NRCS, the forest service, or the USFWS. Sorry about the long ramble. Good Luck.

I'm not expecting some great paying job when I get out but I want to do something that I don't dread going to work most days. I'm doing my bachelors in Wildlife and Fisheries Science and will be getting my Masters in a related field.

Just get an accounting degree. It's all a numbers game.

When I was in Wildlife Science at TAMU back about 1990, the classes were mostly theory, not application. You were expected to be able to take that general theory and be able to apply it to any species. If you were like me and had minimal ranching and hunting experience, that was difficult to do. It was great training to go on grad school, but not so great if you just wanted a BS and a job. Different focus there now, and the BS students are better qualified to get a job than I was. In the long run, any BS degree in any major is suppose to teach you the basics, not specifics. Every job is different, and school is to give you the basics so that you can learn to do the specific job, not know every detail of the job you hope to get.

I started school thinking I wanted to be a predator biologist in the far north. Wolves were cool, deer were okay. Turns out many students felt like that, but there's only so many deer jobs to go around. By time I got done I knew a lot about upland game birds, but really my specialty was computer programming and data analysis. What I expected to learn, what I studied, and what I was good at were three different things. The wildlife profession is very broad, and the expert at one subject in it may very well be a blithering idiot at another subject.

Schools differ greatly in their focus. One might turn out good technicians and ranch biologists, but their graduate degree program is shaky. Some may have wildlife classes, but these are really just a bonus for the animal science, range, or forestry students. Another turns out the best researchers and teachers. If the possibility exists, talk to profs and students at each to see which best fits your needs.

I have a friend whose specialty is in muleys and sheep. Tx deer management just blows his mind.

JRPurvis, you hit the nail on the head...good narrative.