Branches of zoology?

Question

i'm a senior in high school and am leaning toward zoology. i've done lots of research on the subject such as the amount of schooling that is involved, how hard it is to get there, the starting salary and the higher salary. i know there is a branch of zoology that allows me to work directly with more exotic animals such as tigers and especially chimps along with the research that goes along with it. that's what i'm most interested in- working with the more exotic animals, but i can't seem to find the name of this branch or much information on it. i want to know what it's called, what steps i might take to get there, college classes, majors and such. i've also looked for colleges that offer majors not only in biology which i know is impotant, but also in wildlife biology and zoology and can't find but one. any information anyone can offer me would be much appreciated!

Answer 1

If you want to do research with chimps or other large mammals, you'll have to go to graduate school.  What nobody seems to tell high school students is that it matters very little what specific degree you get as an undergraduate in most instances.  Majoring in Biology, Zoology, Wildlife Biology, or Wildlife Conservation would all give you a solid background for more focused work in graduate school.  It's then that you would choose to narrow your focus on something like Primatology.  If you are really interested in working with apes, though, I would suggest taking some Psychology classes in college too.

I went to graduate school in a Marine Science program and there were graduate students there with BS degrees in everything from Zoology, Biology, Environmental Science, and even Philosophy!  It's far more important to take all the classes you can that sound like they'll help you and volunteer and do internships as much as possible.

Answer 2

Sophia gave a great answer, but I want to add on that if you know what you want to do, go talk to the staff at your local zoo.  They can give you guidance in to what classes you should take, and what degree(s) you should work for, for the job that you want.

I work in a museum that features live wild animals that are native to our state.  Our Curatorial department consists of several smaller departments that take care of every class of animals we have, from herpatology, to aquariums, to the mammals.  Just about everyone on our staff have had some sort of biology classes or degrees in biology and the like, depending on their specialty.  

A good way to get your foot in the door with what you want to do is to volunteer or work in apprentice programs at your local zoo, aquarium, or even nature center.  Most of our Curatorial staff used to be volunteers before they were hired on as staff.  They got the training they needed for their jobs as volunteers, which help when various positions open up in their departments.  It's easier to hire a volunteer for a job than it is to hire someone who has never worked in the field before.  Why hire someone you have to train when you can hire someone who's already had the training?

Answer 3

Sounds like you might want to be a wildlife biologist, or a primatologist.  Keep in mind if you want to study these animals in the wild, you are not going to be able to physically interact with them.  I keep seeing SO many people on here that think that there are jobs out there where they can just play with and cuddle wild animals all day and get paid for it.  Just want to bring some reality to this type of work.  Working with these animals in a zoo type or sancuary type environment might bring a little bit more interaction..but even in zoos, animals should not become acclaimated to humans for the safety of everyone involved.  I agree with the other answer, it may not matter exactly what major you do as long as it is animal related, as many of these majors overlap in courses and coverage, but experience will make a lot of difference.  While still in college you should do some volunteer work, internships, or paid seasonal work to get some hands-on experience.  This will help you narrow down exactly what types of animals you want to work with and will help you focus on a thesis topic if you go on to grad school.  Look below for universites across the US offeringa zoology major.

http://www.a2zcolleges.com/Majors/Zoolog...