High school is none too soon for you to begin building a sound foundation. Career preparation often starts with personal motivation expressed in hobbies and spare time activities, such as hunting, fishing, bird watching, insect collecting, nature photography and woodcraft. Many useful skills can be developed in this way. Recognize, however, that while natural resource managers enjoy their work, it is work, not a life-long vacation with pay. In planning a high school program, emphasize courses in biology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics. Also gain a background in such subjects as social and earth sciences, history and geography.
Fish and wildlife management is a discipline in which the scientific specialist bears much responsibility for putting recommendations and "know-how" into language clearly comprehensible to fellow citizens. Almost every conservation worker is expected to address service clubs, sportsmen's groups and other civic organizations so communication skills are most important. This means knowledge of literature and composition. Extra-curricular participation such as debate, school newspaper and yearbook can be helpful.
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