Columbus, OH (population: 768,662) has three wildlife schools within a 100-mile radius of its city center. Ohio University-Main Campus, the highest ranked school in this group with a wildlife program, has a total student population of 22,647. It is the 128th highest ranked school in the USA and one of the highest in the state .
Wildlife students from Columbus schools who go on to become wildlife technicians, wildlife biologists, foresters, wildlife managers, etc. have a good chance at finding employment. For example, there are 7,530 people working as fish and game wardens alone in the US, and their average annual salary is $54,950. Also, Zoologists and wildlife biologists make on average $60,670 per year and there are about 17,460 of them employed in the US today.
Columbus lies in Delaware county, which is one of the 36 counties in Ohio. Overall, the Columbus area has 908,190 total employed workers according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, with a 0.9% unemployment rate, $20.70/hr average worker wage, and a $43,070 average annual salary.
Of the 3 wildlife schools with a 100-mile radius of Columbus, only 1 has a student population over 10k. After taking into account tuition, living expenses, and financial aid, Ohio University-Main Campus comes out as the most expensive ($17,497/yr) for wildlife students, with Hocking College as the lowest, reported at only $12,089/yr.
Name | State | Population | # of Schools | Avg School Rank | Total Programs | Distance from Columbus |
Hilliard | OH | - | 1 | 21.2344 | 13 | 9.4 miles |
Canal Winchester | OH | - | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 13.7 miles |
Concord Twp | OH | - | 1 | 37.8234 | 22 | 46.5 miles |
Yellow Springs | OH | - | 2 | 0.482738 | 0 | 49.3 miles |
Zanesville | OH | - | 4 | 22.0879 | 68 | 51.9 miles |
Kettering | OH | 52,835 | 4 | 32.9219 | 30 | 64.8 miles |
Dayton | OH | 151,594 | 15 | 24.3199 | 569 | 65.8 miles |
Piqua | OH | - | 2 | 25.7036 | 76 | 67.2 miles |
Saint Martin | OH | - | 1 | 11.3716 | 2 | 72.1 miles |
Tiffin | OH | - | 3 | 36.5272 | 159 | 78.4 miles |
Lima | OH | - | 5 | 21.8501 | 114 | 78.5 miles |
Middletown | OH | 51,674 | 7 | 25.6111 | 228 | 80.5 miles |
Findlay | OH | - | 4 | 17.9539 | 100 | 80.8 miles |
Rio Grande | OH | - | 3 | 18.3873 | 146 | 83.4 miles |
New Boston | OH | - | 1 | 21.3268 | 7 | 85.7 miles |
New Philadelphia | OH | - | 2 | 20.6614 | 41 | 88.6 miles |
Vienna | WV | - | 2 | 36.4588 | 41 | 89.4 miles |
Milan | OH | - | 1 | 27.8478 | 15 | 92.7 miles |
Medina | OH | - | 2 | 28.5662 | 14 | 99.1 miles |
Oxford | OH | - | 1 | 41.8383 | 150 | 99.1 miles |