College of Forestry

Renewable Materials Careers

Our graduates don’t follow any one typical career path and have lots of opportunities!  Given the diversity in the ways we use wood products and other renewable materials it is no surprise that career opportunities are just as numerous.  Nationwide the industry employs over 2,000,000 people in 100’s of thousands of locations. 

In Oregon and the Pacific Northwest our graduates are working in urban and rural locations, for small and large companies, for non-profit organizations, schools and universities. There are lots of variations but most graduates start their career in one of four broad areas:

Making useful and necessary products — career opportunities range from working in large manufacturing facilities producing lumber or composite materials to smaller specialty product suppliers serving the green building industry.  Jobs are especially diverse and may involve product and process development, quality control, production and management.  Entry level-positions are typically in production and management training.

 Marketing — is a key to business success and deals with many activities connected with the flow and exchange of ideas, goods and services from initial concept to consumer use.  Jobs can be in large urban offices of smaller start-up companies.  Entry-level positions are often in sales, market analysis, and management training.

Technical service — professionals work for suppliers, industry associations, green builders or manufacturers and use their knowledge of renewable materials and the broad sector to solve problems, improve efficiency or profitability of clients, or provide technical advice. University Extension programs are another source of employment.

Research — scientists and technologists use their creativity and understanding of materials to solving problems, develop new products or create whole new technologies. Research areas are many, especially with product development and behavior, or process improvement. These careers often require graduate degrees.

Some examples of recent jobs taken by OSU graduates:

Other titles of Current jobs held by our graduates: