Natural Resource Undergraduate Students in the New Millennium

Historically, undergraduate college students enrolled in natural resources programs came from rural backgrounds and regularly participated in fishing, hunting, and trapping (i.e., consumptive activities). Student demographics shifted considerably over the past 30 years, with more natural resources students coming from urban backgrounds with lower levels of engagement in consumptive activities. Some stakeholders and employers are concerned that misalignment between student participation in consumptive and nonconsumptive wildlife-related activities and priorities of natural resource management authorities might result in contradicting views on consumptive activities. We sought to understand the background, participation in wildlife-related activities, and career decision-making process of undergraduate college students currently enrolled in natural resources programs in the early 21st century. We conducted an online survey of students enrolled in members of the National Association of University Fisheries and Wildlife Programs. We examined how demographics (including personal and family characteristics) and participation in outdoor activities shaped student decisions to pursue natural resources training in college and career choices. We received 1,376 undergraduate respondents (570 males, 806 females) representing universities and colleges in 29 U.S. states. Responding students were primarily Caucasian with the majority between 18 and 22 years old. Most identified that they regularly (>11 hr/month) spent time outdoors, and just over half acknowledged participating in hunting and fishing. Participation in hunting, fishing, and farming were lower among students identifying as female than among those identifying as male. We also found that family participation in hunting and fishing was most influential on both student involvement in consumptive activities and their decisions to pursue natural resources careers. Students with family participation in consumptive activities made natural resources career decisions in high school as compared with students whose families did not participate in consumptive activities, who waited until early college. Our study indicates that about 50% of undergraduate college students enrolled in natural resource programs do not participate in consumptive activities. Our study also highlights the importance of family participation in consumptive activities in determining school and career outcomes, with implications for student recruitment and retention practices for natural resource academic programs and employers in the early 21st century. (c) 2020 The Wildlife Society.

Automated summary

Over the past 30 years, there has been a shift in the demographics of undergraduate natural resources students, with more students coming from urban backgrounds with lower levels of engagement in consumptive activities. Family participation in consumptive activities plays a crucial role in students' career decision-making.