Botanists

The Botanical Society of America (BSA) suggests that high school students take part in science fairs and clubs and get summer jobs with parks, nurseries, farms, experiment stations, labs, camps, florists, or landscape architects. Hobbies like camping, photography, and computers are useful, too, says the BSA. Additionally, the BSA offers a membership category for amateur botanists. Tour a botanical garden in your area and talk to staff. You can also get information by contacting national associations. For example, visit the BSA’s Web site (https://cms.botany.org) for information on careers in botany. In addition, talk to botanists about their careers. Ask your biology teacher or counselor to help arrange an information interview.