Botanist
Impact: Ecosystem health and plant resource conservation through expert botanical research
Study plant biology, ecology, and evolution to advance scientific understanding of plant life and its role in ecosystems, agriculture, medicine, and climate regulation. Conduct field and laboratory research, identify and classify plant species, study plant-environment interactions, and contribute to conservation and sustainable use of plant resources.
What the day looks like
- People interaction
- Moderate
- Team vs solo
- 60% Team / 40% Solo
- Client facing
- Sometimes
- Impact visibility
- Moderate
- Travel
- 20 to 40% for field research and surveys
- Schedule flexibility
- Moderate
- Remote work
- Hybrid
- Typical work hours
- 38 to 50 hours/week
- Stress level
- High
At a glance
- Median salary
- $95,000
- Entry-level
- $50,000 - $70,000
- Senior
- $150,000+
- Growth by 2033
- 5% (slower than average)
- Demand
- Stable
- Freelance potential
- Low
- Salary growth potential
- Moderate - 50 to 65% growth from entry to senior
- Typical student debt
- Low
Skills you'll use
Hard skills
- 55
Soft skills
- 45
Technical complexity: Moderate
How to get there
- Minimum education
- Master's Degree
- Licensing
- No
- Years to mid-career
- 2 to 4 years
- Years to senior
- 5 to 8 years
- Career switching
- Moderate
Where this career leads
How people arrive here
Where you can go from here
Typical progression
- Research Assistant > Botanist > Senior Botanist > Principal Botanist > Director of Botanical Research
Future outlook
- Automation probability
- 15% low risk as botany requires physical field work and expert taxonomy
- AI disruption risk
- Low
- Demand trend
- Stable
How people feel about it
- Overall satisfaction
- 7/10
- Meaning
- 7/10
- Work-life balance
- 6.5/10
- Prestige
- 7/10
- Social perception
- High