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Wildlife Conservation

Study and Protect

PROGRAM DESIGN

The Rio Wildlife Conservation curriculum provides critical thinking skills, a solid academic background, and specific field and lab skills required for employment by either government or non-government agencies and organizations focused on management, monitoring, and/or research of wildlife and fish resources. Coupled with instilling an attitude of lifelong learning, these skills encourage the flexibility necessary for graduates to advance beyond entry-level positions, and actively engage in the management of wildlife and fisheries in the 21st century.

Earning the Wildlife Conservation degree can be accomplished in one of two ways:  Pursue the full 4-year course requirement as a Rio Student or complete a Hocking College (HC) Associate of Applied Science degree in either Wildlife Management Resources or Fish Management and Aquaculture Science then transfer to Rio as a junior. The Rio Wildlife Conservation degree curriculum addresses theories, issues, and challenges in the context of both basic science and applied management as well as provides hands-on field-orientated instruction.

Wildlife Students studying turtles

Learning Outcomes

  • Interpret and apply information provided in technical and/or peer-reviews formats to address conservation issues.
  • Analyze and summarize natural resources/wildlife-oriented data sets using descriptive statistics and graphical formats.
  • Effectively communicate, in oral and written form, environmental and natural resources technical information.
  • Relate models, theories, and concepts to wildlife conservation challenges.
Students stand at Bear Rock Sign

Certifications

The curriculum for the Wildlife Conservation program is designed to meet the educational requirements to earn Certified Associate Wildlife Biologist (CAWB) status awarded by The Wildlife Society. Elevation to the status of a Certified Wildlife Biologist (CWB) is possible when one obtains at least 5 years of full-time professional experience within a 10-year period. Although not all employers require certification as a condition of employment, both CAWB and CWB certification conveys to employers that an individual has both fundamental educational and ethical standards essential for success as a natural resources professional.
 

Contact Admissions

Learn more about the program or tour our campus and meet Wildlife Conservation faculty and students.

Kamryn Smith

  • Admissions Rep
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Degrees in Wildlife Conservation

Wildlife Conservation (Bachelor)

  • Bachelor's Program

Program Overview

With a background in wildlife and fish conservation and management, you will gain the knowledge to secure employment as a professional with a natural resources-orientated agency, organization, or company or continue on to graduate school.

Learning Outcomes

  • Interpret and apply information provided in technical and/or peer-reviews formats to address conservation issues.
  •  Analyze and summarize natural resources/wildlife- oriented data sets using descriptive statistics and graphical formats.
  • Effectively communicate, in oral and written form, environmental and natural resources technical information.
  • Relate models, theories, and concepts to wildlife conservation challenges.
     

Sample Courses

  • BIO 12204 Biology II    
  • BIO 20704 Ecology    
  • BIO 24203 Wildlife Natural History and ID    
  • BIO 25203 Principles & Practices of Wildlife Management

All Course Requirements

Degree or Certificate
  • Bachelor of Science
Campus Location
  • Rio Grande Main Campus
College or School
  • College of Arts and Sciences
  • School of Liberal Arts & Social Science
Modality
Modality tells you whether this program is in-person, online, or hybrid.
  • All courses required in-person
Total Credit Hours
120

Working in the Field

Wildlife conservation student Whit sits in canoe at Ohio Preserve Lake Katharine.

Whit '24

"Working at Lake Katharine State Nature Preserve has been a fantastic opportunity for me. During my time at Lake Katharine, I have gained a better knowledge of plant communities that call southeast Ohio home, and I have learned valuable skills that I can use in the future. I get to see the work that I put in improves Ohio's State Nature Preserves, and that's something that I am really proud of."