Occupational Safety and Health Workers

High School

If you are interested in becoming an occupational safety and health worker, you will need to acquire a bachelor's degree at the minimum. Therefore, while you are in high school, take a college preparatory course of study. Subjects that you should concentrate on include mathematics and sciences. Especially important are algebra, trigonometry, calculus, biology, chemistry, and physics. Because this work is so involved with people and their reactions to environments, you may also want to take psychology courses. Finally, because part of your work will include writing reports, giving presentations, and explaining changes to others, you will need to develop both your oral and written communication skills. To do this, take English classes throughout your high school years. If your school offers speech classes, you may want to take these as well.

Postsecondary Training

For your postsecondary education, you should plan on getting a bachelor's degree in engineering or in one of the physical or biological sciences. Employers usually prefer to hire a candidate with a bachelor's or master's degree that is specifically related to occupational safety and health, such as safety engineering or management, industrial hygiene, fire-protection engineering, public health, or health physics. Degrees in chemical or mechanical engineering are also very desirable. According to the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), more than 125 colleges and universities offer degrees in safety management, occupational safety, environmental protection, or a related field. Visit the Students section of the ASSE's Web site (https://www.assp.org/students/accredited-academic-programs) for a list of schools. In addition to the schools offering safety degrees, some engineering schools offer a safety specialty within their traditional engineering degree programs. Many schools with safety degree programs are having difficulty accommodating the growing interest in an occupational safety education and have long waiting lists of students. These schools, however, have no trouble placing their graduates in jobs. The ASSE and some private foundations offer scholarships.

Employers are increasingly interested in hiring people who have a knowledge of the three major categories in occupational safety and health: safety, industrial hygiene, and environmental management. Therefore, you should try to combine your studies; for example, if you major in safety, then you should minor in environmental affairs, or vice versa.

Workers in this field must keep abreast of new and changing trends and technologies. For this reason, many insurance companies provide training seminars and correspondence courses for the members of their staff. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration offers courses on topics such as occupational injury investigation and radiological health hazards. The ASSE, the National Safety Council, and other groups also provide continuing professional education for safety engineers.

In some cases you may be able to find employment with only a two-year degree, working as a safety and health technician. To advance in the field, however, you will need to complete further education.