1.What is the difference between environmental as a "hot" sector and other sectors that have had major difficulties like tech or financial. Is this a ten year fad?

Gale Hoffnagle: This business has been growing for 40 years. There have been two downturns, 1982 because of general recession and 1996-7because Title V permit work (a big bubble) was completed.

Rich Fiore: Environmental is here to stay. Having said that, the strength of the environmental market at a given time in any business cycle depends principally on two factors: (1) The general economy, and (2) the amount of environmental regulatory pressure being applied to companies in their purview. If the economy is good and the pressure is high, the market is at its best. If either the economy is good OR the pressure is high, the market is average, and if neither factor is positive, it is at its worst. Right now, it isabout as good as I’ve ever seen it since 1986.

Nancy Pfeffer: I do not see this as a ten year fad. The environmental changes the earth is experiencing are real and the demand for people who understand and can affect them will continue. That said, there will be “fad” issues that come and go, like radon monitoring, or possibly even indoor air quality generally. Also, much of what gets done in the environmental arena (e.g., environmental impact studies/reports) does not directly contribute to environmental improvements.

2. How can you go from being a student; what are ways to get specific experience to get into environmental consulting?

Gale Hoffnagle:TRC offers some summer internships.

Rich Fiore: Take practice al coursework oriented towards air quality; take relevant environmental engineering courses; obtain some industrial environmental internships.

Nancy Pfeffer: Internships are always a great idea. Most government agencies and many private firms and non-profits offer such positions, not always for pay, but often. Any of these kinds of experience could be helpful to someone going into consulting. Another approach is the “informational interview” – i know at least one person who turned that approach into a successful consulting position.

3. How can A&WMA help graduation seniors and graduate students with finding environmental positions?

Gale Hoffnagle: NA.

Rich Fiore: NA

Nancy Pfeffer: A&WMA has a great job posting board on line. Also, attend local a&wma chapter dinner or lunch events, conferences, and national/annual conferences for the networking, which is invaluable for job hunting.

4. One of our technicians is going back to school to achieve a B.S. degree, and is thinking about Environmental Science. What is your perspective on this degree and its marketability?

Gale Hoffnagle: Without a 4-year degree people work at sampling jobs: emissions, soil, buildings, etc.

Rich Fiore: It is not real high, certainly from an industrial perspective, and somewhat less so from a consulting perspective. If your colleague has the proper mindset, I would encourage them to get at least a degree in environmental engineering, with as much available coursework as possible oriented towards air quality.

Nancy Pfeffer: It depends how rigorous and technical it is. Some of these programs can produce generalists, who will have a harder time finding employment (especially in consulting) than specialists.

5. Can Rich Fiore or anyone else address the potential opportunities in the area of climate change? What kind of jobs might there be and how fast would they become in demand?

Gale Hoffnagle: Almost zero demand in the consulting business as of now.

Rich Fiore: As I mentioned during the webinar, I have had only one job order ever with a key component of it being in climate change, and only one other job order with a minor (20%) component of greenhouse gas work (the main part of that second job was traditional air permitting and compliance, so you couldn’t get to do the climate change work unless you had about 8-10 years of “traditional” environmental air quality experience). Both jobs orders were obtained last year. To give a quantitative perspective, last year I took 57 environmentally-focused job orders (out of 117 total EHS/regulatory affairs job orders, which very closely matches the percentage (49.5%) on my webinar slide from a different time period), so 1.2 jobs out of 57 is 2%. I expect this percentage to grow over time, but slowly, and only with Fortune 50-type companies that have a large carbon footprint and highly visible global operations, because of which they will receive a lot more pressure than a mom-and-pop manufacturer. The growth in this area will be largely influenced by the regulatory/political pressure factor mentioned in answer #2 above.

Nancy Pfeffer: I believe that there will be jobs for people who can quantify greenhouse gas emissions for a wide variety of mobile and stationary sources. There will also be demand for people who specialize in designing plans to reduce emissions either for individual companies or for industrial and governmental sectors with large emissions, especially transportation emissions. There should also be substantial demand for similar services in the utility sector.

6. What kind of academic background do positions in the air side of EHS require?

Gale Hoffnagle: BS and/or MS is hard science or engineering.

Rich Fiore: BS Chemical Engineering>BS Mech. Engineering, BS Environmental Engineering, BS Civil Engineering>BS Chemistry (and for consulting, BS Meteorology/Atmospheric Science)

Nancy Pfeffer: Meteorology, toxicology, biology, atmospheric chemistry, chemistry.

7. I'm sure it depends on the employer and position, but is a master degree in environmental engineering a good educational investment?

Gale Hoffnagle: Less so than a hard science or engineering degree.

Rich Fiore: It doesn’t hurt, except for the time and expense investment.

Nancy Pfeffer: I would say generally that there is more potential career and salary growth potential for someone with a master’s degree. It does, however, depend on employer and position – examine your own situation and goals when deciding.

8. As far as climate change is concerned, what would be some examples of new jobs in the field?

Gale Hoffnagle: None known.

Rich Fiore: See answer to #5 above.

Nancy Pfeffer: Please see Question #5.

9. These presentations focused on technically degreed persons, but what about other environmental jobs such as Business Development? Is this a growing field for Sales and management? Possibly in the strategic sustainability fields? This could be directed to the recruiting agency.

Gale Hoffnagle: Very few such jobs in the consulting field.

Rich Fiore: I’ve only seen dedicated environmental business development roles in consulting firms, like TRC, where Gale Hoffnagle is. There is virtually no need for that in industrial corporations, at least from an environmental perspective. Within those types of firms, selling high-level sustainability services has usually fallen to the senior seller-doer, usually a high-level principal-level person within the firm with a strong “credibility factor.”

Nancy Pfeffer: I do think there is a role for business development and other aspects of the environmental field that are not directly technical. I have seen many people come to the environmental field from diverse degrees such as anthropology and even political science. The intersection of policy and environment is fascinating, busy, and growing.

10. We had a number of biology majors here today and were wondering if any of you had specific job search resources as well as job outlooks, etc.

Gale Hoffnagle: TRC provides environmental evaluations of projects on Federal land or pipeline and transmission land right of ways thatinvolve biological assessments as well as cultural assessments.

Rich Fiore: In general, science degrees do not “sell” as well as engineering degrees, whether you’re talking about industry or consulting. Cumulatively, I have seen many resumes of people with Bachelor’s in biology in the environmental field, but those people often got those degrees in the 1970s and 1980s, when the field was relatively new, and “environmental engineering” wasn’t as prevalent as it is now. The market has definitely become more finicky about degree types over the years, so for people with BS in any science, I recommend that the go on and get a Master’s degree in Environmental Engineering, which would not be as rigorous as often as some other hard engineering Master’s programs. Of course, if the Bachelor’s holder in biology was a glutton for punishment, that “gold standard” degree I have mentioned (BS Chemical engineering) would be best---at least some of the chemistry courses would have been taken.

Nancy Pfeffer: (I don’t know of anything specifically helpful to biology majors.)

11. In California, to be hired as a consultant is there a special certification needed or required?

Gale Hoffnagle: NA

Rich Fiore: NA

Nancy Pfeffer: No. California started a registered environmental assessor program about 10-15 years ago, but i do not think it is a factor in anyone’s hiring decisions.

12. What is the relative split between technician jobs (Assoc's degree or training) versus technical jobs that need a B.S. or higher degrees?

Gale Hoffnagle: In consulting, 30% technical and 70% degreed.

Rich Fiore: I can only comment with regard to industry, and tell you that most all chemical plants and refineries have at least one environmental technician. Even the smallest plants seem to have at least one; the largest may have a dozen or more.

Nancy Pfeffer: I cannot answer this question.

13. What jobs or positions would Meteorology undergrad and Atmospheric Science grad degrees with a concentration is air quality qualify for?

Gale Hoffnagle: TRC hires meteorologists ( I am one) to provide air quality modeling.

Rich Fiore: Mostly for consulting jobs; occasionally a very large corporation that as the luxury of affording their own modelers on staff will hire people with those degrees, but in my experience it’s very uncommon. The most likely industries would be the power generation or natural gas pipeline transmission. A good indication of who might have such folks would be to find out the companies on such industries task forces such as the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America’s (INGAA) Climate Change task group.

Nancy Pfeffer: I would think these folks would make excellent air quality modelers and i think there is some demand for this function. They could also be part of permitting or environmental impact assessment work conducted by consulting/engineering firms.

14. How easy will be it for an American to relocate to Canada for work? What is the VISA requirement?

Gale Hoffnagle: NA

Rich Fiore: NA

Nancy Pfeffer: I cannot answer this question.

15. Is the job scenario different for PhDs? If it is, how and in what way? For California, mentioned growth in environmental planning, which sector would utilize this the most?

Gale Hoffnagle: TRC is much less interested in PhD candidates because of overspecialization and a more academic outlook.

Rich Fiore: As discussed in the Q & A session after the webinar, a PhD is generally a death knell for industry, unless you are in toxicology and want to do environmental or human-health risk assessments-related work. For environmental jobs, some of the large oil companies, like ExxonMobil (EPR—ExxonMobil Production Research in Houston, for example, or Shell’s Westhollow Research Center in the Houston area), have some PhDs in their R&D operations, but for plant jobs, it’s a big turn-off---they are viewed as too educated to be challenged intellectually and too high level to relate well to the plant rank-and-file, with whom you would have to interact daily. There is a somewhat better chance in consulting of getting a job, because credentials are a bigger part of attracting work in that industry. Big firms like ERM seem to go for the PhD more.

Nancy Pfeffer: There is not a great deal of specific demand for ph.d.’s except in research and development and in academia. The government sector continues to hire the most environmental planners, but these do not generally need to be ph.d.’s.

16. What are the opportunities for International students to gain some experience in US, since students find difficulties in getting employment due to visa issues?

Gale Hoffnagle: Your English and communications skills must be impeccable to be considered in the consulting business.

Rich Fiore: try to get into an advanced environmental degree program, then try to get a summer internship while thereNancy Pfeffer: I don’t have any direct experience here, but i would recommend going through your school’s career or placement office; using the internet to find unique niches or opportunities; making connections through overseas chapters of a&wma; and looking for specific government or non-profit exchange programs.

17. We have several questions which we would greatly appreciate your responses. A number of our members have a BS in Meteorology and are currently pursuing a MS in Atmospheric Science with a concentration in Air Quality. If you would please address the responses to the following questions to the best of your ability specifically to our area of study?

a.) As far as climate change is concerned, what would be some examples of new jobs in the field?

Gale Hoffnagle: None at this point. There are no commercial clients who need climate change modeling.

Rich Fiore: See my answer to question #5 above.

Nancy Pfeffer: See answer above (Question 5)

b. In California, to be hired as a consultant is there a special certification needed or required?

Gale Hoffnagle: NA

Rich Fiore: NA

Nancy Pfeffer: No, see answer abovee (Question 11)

c. Would a Master's degree be equivalent to 1-2 years experience?

Gale Hoffnagle: Yes, In most case if the concentration is in air quality.

Rich Fiore: More for consultants than for industry.

Nancy Pfeffer: I think this is generally approximately true, and is often stated thus in job descriptions. But it’s just a guideline and what really matters is the fit of the candidate with the need of the hiring organization, both current and future. So don’t let a small apparent mismatch in qualifications stop you from applying.

d. What jobs or positions would Meteorology undergrad and Atmospheric Science grad degrees with a concentration is air quality qualify for?

Gale Hoffnagle: Entry level modeler.

Rich Fiore: See my answer to Question #13 above

Nancy Pfeffer: See answer above (Question 13)

e. What areas, companies, and agencies should we look towards to obtain an entry level position (on straight out of college with out work experience)?

Gale Hoffnagle: Consulting and the State agencies.

Rich Fiore: I can comment from a recruiting firm perspective---we will generally not be of much help, because we charge large fees for placement of experienced professionals. To be quantitative, I have placed 4 entry-level people out of 458 permanent placements. The only exception might be some of the temp firms who might need some field people to do environmental sampling on a contract basis, like Kelly Services or Manpower.

Nancy Pfeffer: It’s hard to generalize here, every type of industry hires at the entry level sometimes. Consulting is probably not thebest place to try coming in at this level, but government might be more accommodating. The best strategy is to get work experience inthe form of an internship or summer position before you graduate.

Computer skills?

Gale Hoffnagle: As a complete answer to your question, When reviewing applicants for our business we insist that they have basic computer skills. The minimum would be Word, Excel and Access and Fortran. We prefer that they also have CAD and ARCVIEW experience. We are impressed with those who have sufficient skills to have run air quality or groundwater models.