Careers > Soil and Plant Scientists

Soil and Plant Scientists

$65.73K Median Salary 2.3K Job Openings (Annual Projection) 10.1% Job Growth

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About This Career

Conduct research in breeding, physiology, production, yield, and management of crops and agricultural plants or trees, shrubs, and nursery stock, their growth in soils, and control of pests; or study the chemical, physical, biological, and mineralogical composition of soils as they relate to plant or crop growth. May classify and map soils and investigate effects of alternative practices on soil and crop productivity.

Reported Job Titles

Agronomist, Arboriculture Researcher, Crop Nutrition Scientist, Forage Physiologist, Horticulture Specialist, Plant Physiologist, Plant Research Geneticist, Research Scientist, Research Soil Scientist, Scientist

Skills You'll Need

Click on skills to find related courses.

Abilities

Category Flexibility
Deductive Reasoning
Inductive Reasoning
Information Ordering
Oral Comprehension
Oral Expression
Written Comprehension
Written Expression
Originality
Problem Sensitivity
Near Vision
Speech Clarity
Fluency of Ideas
Flexibility of Closure
Speech Recognition
Mathematical Reasoning
Number Facility
Far Vision
Perceptual Speed
Selective Attention

Knowledge

Biology
English Language
Computers and Electronics
Chemistry
Mathematics
Education and Training
Geography
Communications and Media
Engineering and Technology
Administration and Management
Physics
Customer and Personal Service

Skills

Active Learning
Critical Thinking
Reading Comprehension
Science
Speaking
Active Listening
Complex Problem Solving
Writing
Judgment and Decision Making
Systems Analysis
Systems Evaluation
Learning Strategies
Mathematics
Monitoring
Instructing
Coordination
Operations Analysis
Quality Control Analysis
Social Perceptiveness

Technology Skills

Analytical or scientific software
Presentation software
Data base user interface and query software
Geographic information system
Spreadsheet software
Categorization or classification software
Office suite software
Word processing software
Computer aided design CAD software
Object or component oriented development software
Map creation software
Web platform development software

Tools

Radarbased surveillance systems
Spectrofluorimeters or fluorimeters
Photometer
pH meters
Laboratory flasks
Soil core sampling apparatus
Refrigerated and heated reach in environmental or growth chambers
Drying cabinets or ovens
Orbital shaking water baths
Soil testing kits
Light absorption meters
Laboratory box furnaces
Laboratory mills
Multipurpose or general test tubes
Circulating baths
Inductively coupled plasma ICP spectrometers
Reciprocating shaking water baths
Infrared imagers
Laboratory balances
Rapid amplification or complementary deoxyribonucleic acid ends RACE technology products
Fluorescent microscopes
Test sieves
Tissue culture incubators
Precipitation or evaporation recorders
Spectrometers
Notebook computers
Laboratory beakers
Benchtop centrifuges
Particle size measuring apparatus
Handheld thermometer
Moisture meters
Personal digital assistant PDAs or organizers
Laminar flow cabinets or stations
Refrigerated benchtop centrifuges
Gel documentation systems
Hydrometers
Laboratory graduated cylinders
Portable data input terminals
Infra red or ultra violet absorption analyzers
Permeability or porosity estimation apparatus
Sample holders
Microplate readers
Global positioning system GPS receiver
Augers
Laboratory mixers
Electron microscopes
Psychrometers
Gel dryers
Mass spectrometers
Digital cameras
Ion chromatographs
Autosamplers
Organic carbon analyzers
Polarizing microscopes
Thermocouples
Spectrophotometers
Atomic absorption AA spectrometers
Desktop computers
Osmometers
Personal computers
Colorimeters
Tensiometers
Conductivity meters