Environmental Science

Introduction

Did you know that there are over 2 million job titles and over 900 industries in Canada? That is a lot of possible career options! Understanding the Canadian economy and the types of jobs that are available is one of the best ways to begin your career search.

Students often report feeling limited by their degree choice and worry that they may not have many viable career options. Although your degree can point you in a career direction, it will not necessarily determine the type of job you can pursue. Unlike many college programs, your undergraduate degree is not intended to train you for one specific job. Some students may feel frustrated by this, but the great news is that your degree opens up many more opportunities than you may think!

Employers today are looking for graduates with transferable skills and people who have a sense of where they fit into the world of work. Because of this, it is really important to think beyond your degree when making a career decision. You want to consider all of your interests, the skills you would like to use, what fits with your personality, and the values that you have.

Determining your career path requires a lot of research, both personal and occupational. It's almost impossible to make a career decision if you haven't invested time in both of these things. This section will get you started and will showcase some popular industries and occupational areas related to your degree.

Educational Services

The Educational Services sector comprises establishments that provide instruction and training in a wide variety of subjects. This instruction and training is provided by specialized establishments, such as schools, colleges, universities, and training centers. These establishments may be privately owned and operated for profit or not for profit, or they may be publicly owned and operated. They may also offer food and/or accommodation services to their students.

Educational services are usually delivered by teachers or instructors that explain, tell, demonstrate, supervise, and direct learning. Instruction is imparted in diverse settings, such as educational institutions, the workplace, or the home, and through diverse means, such as correspondence, television, the Internet, or other electronic and distance-learning methods.

Sample Job Titles:

Environmental Health

Elevated interest and concern for the environment has not been ignored by industry. With your knowledge of environmental science, you can guide companies and government in green practices ? preventing pollution, reducing waste, appropriate use of energy, materials and natural resources.

Jobs in this industry are within the framework of a new environmental science paradigm dealing with preventing pollution and promoting the efficient and appropriate use of energy, materials and natural resources. This encourages industries to establish sustainable systems that can help protect the environment, as well as improve the corporate bottom line.

Sample Job Titles:

Environmental Law, Politics and Policy

Further education is required.

The legal services industry incorporates a range of services for clients requiring legal assistance. Opportunities are available in private practice, the public sector and in-house in industry and commerce.

Environmental Law specifically deals with legal matters that affect the natural environment. This could include matters of environmental protection, pollution emissions, resource extraction, to name a few. Those working in Environmental Politics and Policy could be reviewing, analyzing, interpreting and/or creating policies related to the natural environment. Areas of employment could include various levels of government, industry and businesses and non-profit and non-governmental organizations.

Sample Job Titles:

Environmental Protection and Conservation

Is your passion to protect the environment, conserve natural habitats and restore degraded habitats? If so, you might be interested in a career in environmental protection and conservation.

Individuals working in this field would have the opportunity to develop programs and standards to help protect and conserve the natural environment or conduct studies to collect data to inform policy makers about impacts of legislative or regulatory changes in environmental protection. Professionals in environmental protection and conservation may also be involved in projects focused on returning degraded habitat to a functioning ecosystem. Typically, these projects would involve working with teams of individuals with various areas of expertise. Employment areas include private organizations, non-profit and non-governmental organizations and various levels of the government.

Sample Job Titles:

Environmental Research

"Research" aims to generate knowledge in the hopes that it will help create or improve a product, process or service. "Development" converts research findings or other knowledge into a new or improved product, process or service.

In concrete terms, R&D brings new knowledge and processes to Canadian businesses — the new, higher value-added products, processes and services that Canada needs in order to thrive in a knowledge-intensive market. Innovative companies can offer skilled employment opportunities for Canada's knowledge workers.

Companies embarking on R&D projects need to adopt focused business strategies, obtain secure financing and undertake risk management.

Sample Job Titles:

Other Industries

This section has highlighted a number of popular industries and job titles that align with your academic program; however, it was by no means an exhaustive list of all the possible options available to you with the degree you possess. Access the resources below to learn about other industries and job titles that are a fit for you.

Canadian Industries: Browse through over 900 Canadian Industries.

LinkedIn: Search through thousands of Western Alumni by degree.

National Occupational Classification (NOC): The national reference on occupations - organizes over 40,000 job titles.

Informational Interviews: Find out about jobs and career paths you never knew existed.

CareerCruising: Peruse career & further educational options (visit the "Resources" section of CareerCentral for the username & password).

Working in Canada: The leading source for labour market information in Canada.

US Occupational Outlook Handbook: Browse hundreds of occupational profiles.