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Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Blacksburg, VA · Public · Bachelor's Degree
33 /100
DegreeWorth Score (Base Case)
37
Optimistic
33
Base Case
26
Pessimistic
Earnings $25,563/yr (-14% vs median)
AI Risk High (48% exposed)
Job Market Small (4,000 openings/yr)

How AI Changes the Outlook

Three scenarios based on how aggressively AI disrupts the career paths available to Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management graduates.

Optimistic
No Disruption		 Base Case
Gradual AI		 Pessimistic
Aggressive AI
10-Year Earnings $526K $313K $190K
Earnings Multiple (In-State) 8.5x 5.1x 3.1x
Earnings Multiple (Out-of-State) 3.6x 2.1x 1.3x
Viable Career Paths 3 of 3 3 of 3 3 of 3
DegreeWorth Score 37 33 26

10-Year Earnings Projection

*Year 1 uses actual reported earnings. Scenarios diverge as AI impact compounds over time.

4-Year Tuition (In-State)
$61,912
Out-of-state: $146,776
Median Debt at Graduation
$21,390
10.0 months of Year 1 earnings
Reported Earnings (5 Year)
$45,136
77% growth from Year 1

Career Paths

Where Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management graduates typically work. Raw data — no blending. The scenarios above model how these factors interact. This field has roughly 4,000 combined openings per year.

Career Path Wage Openings/yr Growth AI Risk
Forestry and conservation science teachers, postsecondary $100,830 100 +4.0% 48%
Zoologists and wildlife biologists $72,860 1,400 +1.6% 45%
Conservation scientists $67,950 2,500 +3.4% 52%

Compare & Explore

Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management at Other Schools

Valley City State University ($44,253) Stephen F Austin State University ($43,282) Brigham Young University-Idaho ($39,896) South Dakota State University ($39,483) Northwest Missouri State University ($36,758) Paul Smiths College of Arts and Science ($35,979) Bemidji State University ($35,806) New Mexico State University-Main Campus ($33,603)

Other Majors at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Computer and Information Sciences, General ($96,432) Computer Engineering ($86,636) Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering ($83,364) Construction Engineering ($82,627) Industrial Engineering ($82,437) Chemical Engineering ($82,382) Applied Mathematics ($82,275) Engineering Mechanics ($81,735)

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the DegreeWorth Score for Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University?
This program scores 33/100 in the Base Case scenario, factoring in earnings, AI disruption risk, job market size, and earnings multiple. The score ranges from 37 (optimistic) to 26 (pessimistic) depending on AI's impact.
How does AI affect Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management career prospects?
We model three scenarios: Optimistic (no disruption), Base Case (gradual AI adoption), and Pessimistic (aggressive AI displacement). In the base case, Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management graduates retain 3 of 3 viable career paths. 10-year earnings range from $190,257 (pessimistic) to $525,996 (optimistic).
How many job openings are there for Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management graduates?
The career paths mapped to Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management have roughly 4,000 combined job openings per year nationally, making this a small job market.
Is Wildlife and Wildlands Science and Management at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University worth it?
In the Base Case, this degree earns 5.1x its in-state tuition over 10 years. Even in the Pessimistic scenario, the multiple is 3.1x. The spread between scenarios tells you how sensitive this degree is to AI disruption.
Data: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (earnings, debt), Bureau of Labor Statistics 2024-2034 (employment projections), OpenAI GPTs-are-GPTs research (AI task exposure), Felten et al. AIOE. Scenarios use a continuous weighting function combining AI exposure and BLS job growth projections. "Earnings Multiple" is total 10-year projected earnings divided by tuition — not a discounted financial ROI. Last updated 2025.