Environmental Planner / Scientist
What Does a Professional in this Career Do?
An Environmental Planner or Scientist uses training and background in natural sciences to study the environment and threats to the environment. Investigates environmental problems and advises on solutions. May focus on potential environmental health risks to people, such as unsafe drinking water, or on protecting the environment and ecosystems from human activity such as development and industrial pollution.
Job Outlook
There were 1058 Environmental Planner / Scientist job postings in North Carolina in the past year and 32804 in the United States.
In combination with other careers in the Environmental Planner / Scientist industry, which includes the Environmental Planner / Scientist career, the following graph shows the number of people employed for each year since 2015:
Salary
Many new Environmental Planner / Scientist jobs have salaries estimated to be in the following ranges, based on the requirements and responsibilities listed in job postings from the past year.
National
The average estimated salary in the United States for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $85,216.
State
The average estimated salary in North Carolina for this career, based on job postings in the past year, is $80,686.
Percentiles represent the percentage that is lower than the value. For example, 25% of estimated salaries for Environmental Planner / Scientist postings in the United States in the past year were lower than $67,138.
Education and Experience
Posted Environmental Planner / Scientist jobs typically require the following level of education. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list education requirements.
| Education Level | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Associate's Degree | 0% |
| Bachelor's Degree | 69.61% |
| Master's Degree | 26.42% |
| Doctoral Degree | 7.79% |
| Other | 7.58% |
Posted Environmental Planner / Scientist jobs typically require the following number of years of experience. The numbers below are based on job postings in the United States from the past year. Not all job postings list experience requirements.
| Years of Experience | Percentage |
|---|---|
| 0 to 2 years | 37.63% |
| 3 to 5 years | 39.12% |
| 6 to 8 years | 12.33% |
| 9+ years | 10.92% |
Skills
Below are listings of the most common general and specialized skills Environmental Planner / Scientist positions expect applicants to have as well as the most common skills that distinguish individuals from their peers. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is also listed.
Baseline Skills
A skill that is required across a broad range of occupations, including this one.
- Communication (39.98%)
- Management (34.61%)
- Planning (27.67%)
- Research (26.41%)
- Operations (24.56%)
- Writing (20.4%)
- Leadership (19.83%)
- Coordinating (19.61%)
- Investigation (17.97%)
- Detail Oriented (16.41%)
Defining Skills
A core skill for this occupation, it occurs frequently in job postings.
- Environmental Permitting (9.3%)
- Biology (28.59%)
- Environmental Impact Assessments (5.81%)
- Ecology (11.63%)
- Environmental Consulting (7.29%)
- Environmental Resource Management (5.01%)
- Environmental Planning (8.98%)
- Field Research (12.49%)
- Environmental Science (51.83%)
- Environmental Laws (20.44%)
- National Environmental Policy Act (8.22%)
- Geology (17.37%)
- Project Management (30.23%)
- Groundwater (11.93%)
- Sampling (Statistics) (12.03%)
Necessary Skills
A skill that is requested frequently in this occupation but isn’t specific to it.
- Site Assessment (8.75%)
- Auditing (11.38%)
- Geographic Information Systems (12.39%)
- Regulatory Compliance (8.82%)
- Chemistry (14.9%)
- Business Development (7.29%)
- Construction (6.94%)
- Data Collection (15.86%)
- Data Analysis (13.81%)
- Geography (3.72%)
- Stormwater Management (11.21%)
- Environmental Engineering (14.25%)
- Environmental Compliance (15.56%)
- Risk Analysis (4.21%)
- Subcontracting (7.82%)
- Technical Writing (11.03%)
- Soil Science (18.02%)
- Environment Health And Safety (9.14%)
Distinguishing Skills
A skill that may distinguish a subset of the occupation.
- Wetland Delineation (7%)
- Soil Sampling (2.29%)
- California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (3.99%)
- Sustainability Initiatives (2.34%)
- Endangered Species Act (3.84%)
- Groundwater Monitoring (1.33%)
- Clean Water Act (6.19%)
- Air Quality (7.08%)
- Environmental Management Systems (2.8%)
- Environmental Impact Statements (3.78%)
- Environmental Auditing (1.29%)
- Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (1.74%)
- Environmental Issue (6.06%)
- Earth Science (2.41%)
- Impact Assessment (1.6%)
- Environmentalism (2.77%)
- Greenhouse Gas (3.02%)
- Environmental Studies (5.77%)
- Pollution Prevention (6.74%)
- Hydrogeology (3.87%)
- Resource Conservation And Recovery Act (RCRA) (6.29%)
- Surface Water (5.33%)
- Sediment (3.51%)
- Spill Response (2.78%)
- Water Quality (4.62%)
Salary Boosting Skills
A professional who wishes to excel in this career path may consider developing the following highly valued skills. The percentage of job postings that specifically mention each skill is listed.
- Environmental Permitting (18.42%)
- Sustainability Initiatives (4.63%)
- Environmental Impact Statements (7.48%)
- Environmental Laws (40.47%)
- Environmental Planning (17.78%)
- Impact Assessment (3.17%)
- Project Management (59.84%)
Alternative Job Titles
Sometimes employers post jobs with Environmental Planner / Scientist skills but a different job title. Some common alternative job titles include:
- Environmental Scientist
- Environmental Specialist
- Environmental Planner
- Transfer Station Operator
- Environmental Scientist/Geologist
- Environmental Engineer/Scientist
- Environmental Analyst
- Environmental Protection Specialist
- Environmental Coordinator
- Sustainability Manager
Similar Occupations
If you are interested in exploring occupations with similar skills, you may want to research the following job titles. Note that we only list occupations that have at least one corresponding NC State Online and Distance Education program.
- Environmental Compliance Specialist
- Environmental Engineer
- Field Biologist
- Conservation Scientist
- Water Resource Specialist
- Hydrologist
Common Employers
Here are the employers that have posted the most Environmental Planner / Scientist jobs in the past year along with how many they have posted.
United States
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (1338)
- AECOM (597)
- WSP Global (569)
- Actalent (508)
- State of Florida (489)
- Stantec (486)
- State of Minnesota (460)
- Eurofins (384)
- Transdev (315)
- Environmental Protection Agency (299)
North Carolina
- State of North Carolina (68)
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (50)
- AECOM (34)
- Actalent (22)
- Johnson, Mirmiran & Thompson (17)
- ICF International (17)
- Zachary Piper Solutions (16)
- Environmental Protection Agency (15)
- Thermo Fisher Scientific (15)
- Environmental International Consultants (14)
NC State Programs Relevant to this Career
If you are interested in preparing for a career in this field, the following NC State Online and Distance Education programs offer a great place to start!
- Agriculture Data Science Graduate Certificates
- Biological and Agricultural Engineering Master's Degrees
- Climate Adaptation Graduate Certificates
- Environmental Assessment Master's Degrees
- Environmental Assessment Graduate Certificates
- Fundamentals of Entomology Undergraduate Certificates
- Renewable Energy Assessment Undergraduate Certificates
- Soil Science Master's Degrees
All wages, job posting statistics, employment trend projections, and information about skill desirability on this page represents historical data and does not guarantee future conditions. Data is provided by and downloaded regularly from Lightcast. For more information about how Lightcast gathers data and what it represents, see Lightcast Data: Basic Overview on Lightcast's Knowledge Base website.