Career profile for Environmental Science Professor

What does an Environmental Science Professor do?

Environmental Science Professors teach courses in environmental science.

In addition, Environmental Science Professors includes both teachers primarily engaged in teaching and those who do a combination of teaching and research.

What kind of tasks does an Environmental Science Professor perform regularly?

Environmental Science Professors are often responsible for overseeing or executing some or all of the following tasks:

Evaluate and grade students' class work, laboratory work, projects, assignments, and papers.
Prepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, or handouts.
Supervise students' laboratory and field work.
Advise students on academic and vocational curricula, and on career issues.
Keep abreast of developments in the field by reading current literature, talking with colleagues, giving presentations at conferences, and serving on committees in professional associations.
Supervise undergraduate or graduate teaching, internship, and research work.
Plan, evaluate, and revise curricula, course content, course materials, and methods of instruction.
Initiate, facilitate, and moderate classroom discussions.
Conduct research in a particular field of knowledge and publish findings in scholarly journals, books, or electronic media.
Maintain student attendance records, grades, and other required records.
Compile, administer, and grade examinations or assign this work to others.
Maintain regularly scheduled office hours to advise and assist students.
Collaborate with colleagues to address teaching and research issues.
Prepare and deliver lectures to undergraduate or graduate students on topics such as anatomy, therapeutic recreation, and conditioning theory.
Select and obtain materials and supplies, such as textbooks and performance pieces.
Write letters of recommendation for students.
Participate in student recruitment, registration, and placement activities.
Write grant proposals to procure external research funding and review others' grant proposals.
Serve on academic or administrative committees that deal with institutional policies, departmental matters, and academic issues.
Review papers or serve on editorial boards for scientific journals, and review grant proposals for various agencies.
Compile bibliographies of specialized materials for outside reading assignments.

The above responsibilities are specific to Environmental Science Professors. More generally, Environmental Science Professors are involved in several broader types of activities:

Activities	Importance	Details
Getting Information		Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Training and Teaching Others		Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge		Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
Working with Computers		Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates		Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

Getting Information

Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

Training and Teaching Others

Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.

Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge

Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.

Working with Computers

Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.

Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates

Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

What is an Environmental Science Professor salary?

The median salary for an Environmental Science Professor is $84,740, and the average salary is $94,520. Both the median and average roughly describe the middle of the Environmental Science Professor salary range, but the average is more easily affected by extremely high or low salaries.

Many Environmental Science Professors earn significantly more or less than the average, due to several factors. About 10% of Environmental Science Professors earn less than $42,830 per year, 25% earn less than $60,650, 75% earn less than $114,720, and 90% earn less than $159,640.

Between the years of 2020 and 2030, the number of Environmental Science Professors is expected to change by 7.0%, and there should be roughly 700 open positions for Environmental Science Professors every year.

Median annual salary: $84,740
Typical salary range: $42,830 - $159,640
Projected growth (2020 - 2030): 7.0%

What personality traits are common among Environmental Science Professors?

Interests

Career interests describe a person's preferences for different types of working environments and activities. When a person's interest match the demands of an occupation, people are usually more engaged and satisfied in that role.

Compared to most occupations, those who work as an Environmental Science Professor are usually higher in their Social, Investigative, and Artistic interests.

Environmental Science Professors typically have very strong Social interests. Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.

Also, Environmental Science Professors typically have very strong Investigative interests. Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.

Lastly, Environmental Science Professors typically have moderate Artistic interests. Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.

Values

People differ in their values, or what is most important to them for building job satisfaction and fulfillment.

Compared to most people, those working as an Environmental Science Professor tend to value Achievement, Recognition, and Independence.

Most importantly, Environmental Science Professors very strongly value Achievement. Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

Second, Environmental Science Professors strongly value Recognition. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious.

Lastly, Environmental Science Professors strongly value Independence. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions.

Psychological Demands

Each occupation brings its own set of psychological demands, which describe the characteristics necessary to perform the job well.

In order to perform their job successfully, people who work as Environmental Science Professors must consistently demonstrate qualities such as initiative, integrity, and analytical thinking.

Below, you'll find a list of qualities typically required of Environmental Science Professors, ranked by importance:

Demands	Importance	Details
Initiative		Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
Integrity		Job requires being honest and ethical.
Analytical Thinking		Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
Persistence		Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
Achievement/Effort		Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.

Initiative

Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.

Integrity

Job requires being honest and ethical.

Analytical Thinking

Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.

Persistence

Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.

Achievement/Effort

Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.

What education and training do Environmental Science Professors need?

Many Environmental Science Professors have earned a graduate degree. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a doctoral degree, such as a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D..

Environmental Science Professors may need some on-the-job training, but most candidates will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.

Educational degrees among Environmental Science Professors

0.6% did not complete high school or secondary school
1.4% completed high school or secondary school
2.0% completed some college coursework
1.8% earned a Associate's degree
14.6% earned a Bachelor's degree
32.1% earned a Master's degree
47.4% earned a doctorate or professional degree

Knowledge and expertise required by Environmental Science Professors

Environmental Science Professors may benefit from understanding of specialized subject areas, such as education and training, biology, or chemistry knowledge.

The list below shows several areas in which most Environmental Science Professors might want to build proficiency, ranked by importance.

Knowledge areas	Importance	Details
Education and Training		Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Biology		Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Chemistry		Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Mathematics		Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Computers and Electronics		Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Education and Training

Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

Biology

Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

Chemistry

Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

Mathematics

Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

Computers and Electronics

Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Important Abilities needed by Environmental Science Professors

Environmental Science Professors must develop a particular set of abilities to perform their job well. Abilities are individual capacities that influence a person's information processing, sensory perception, motor coordination, and physical strength or endurance. Individuals may naturally have certain abilities without explicit training, but most abilities can be sharpened somewhat through practice.

For example, Environmental Science Professors need abilities such as oral expression, written comprehension, and oral comprehension in order to perform their job at a high level. The list below shows several important abilities for Environmental Science Professors, ranked by their relative importance.

Abilities	Importance	Details
Oral Expression		The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Written Comprehension		The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Oral Comprehension		The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Written Expression		The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Deductive Reasoning		The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

Oral Expression

The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

Written Comprehension

The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.

Oral Comprehension

The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Written Expression

The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

Deductive Reasoning

The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

Critical Skills needed by Environmental Science Professors

Skills are developed capacities that enable people to function effectively in real-world settings. Unlike abilities, skills are typically easier to build through practice and experience. Skills influence effectiveness in areas such as learning, working with others, design, troubleshooting, and more.

Environmental Science Professors frequently use skills like reading comprehension, speaking, and active listening to perform their job effectively. The list below shows several critical skills for Environmental Science Professors, ranked by their relative importance.

Skills	Importance	Details
Reading Comprehension		Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
Speaking		Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Active Listening		Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Writing		Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Science		Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.

Reading Comprehension

Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.

Speaking

Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Active Listening

Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Writing

Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Science

Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.

What is the source of this information?

The information provided on this page is adapted from data and descriptions published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration under the CC BY 4.0 license. TraitLab has modified some information for ease of use and reading, and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment, and Training Administration has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

If you have any questions or suggestions about this information, please send a message.

Career profile Environmental Science Professor

Environmental Science Professor

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