Intern - Forestry

Sierra Pacific Industries; Standard (CA); On-site; USD 29,000 - 32,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Housing allowance

Job summary

Sierra Pacific Industries offers a Forestry Internship that gives hands-on experience managing working forests. You’ll work outdoors with foresters, perform field tasks, and support real projects that sustain forest health and productivity.

The internship runs May/June through August/September 2027, with an hourly wage and housing allowance for qualifying individuals. A valid driver’s license and ability to hike steep terrain are required.

Qualifications

• Must be continuing education in Fall 2027, pursuing a degree in forestry, natural resources, or significantly related field.
• Interns must be able to cross‑country hike and negotiate steep, brushy terrain.
• Interns must have a valid driver’s license and ability to navigate a 4‑wheel drive vehicle along off‑highway roads.

Responsibilities

• Timber cruising
• Sawmill log procurement
• Timber Harvest Plan (THP) preparation
• Logging administration
• Harvest unit layout
• Wildlife and botany work
• GIS
• Road layout
• Reforestation

Skills

Fieldwork

Outdoor hiking

Driver's license

Education

Forestry or Natural Resources degree (pursuing)

Tools

GIS

Job description

Wages range from $21 to $23 per hour

At Sierra Pacific Industries, you’ll do more than study forestry. You’ll gain hands‑on experience managing working forests while learning from experienced foresters. Our internship is designed to complement classroom learning by providing meaningful field experience, exposure to sustainable forest management, and opportunities to contribute to real projects that support long‑term forest health and productivity.

This is a field‑based internship. Forestry Interns spend the majority of their time working outdoors alongside forestry professionals in active timberlands. Interns should be prepared to hike on steep and uneven terrain, work in varying weather conditions, and perform physically demanding fieldwork.

Forestry Internships offered by Sierra Pacific Industries may provide opportunity for employment upon graduation from our interns’ respective degree programs. Completion of an internship is not a guarantee, nor an offer of employment.

The Forestry Internship position may include

• Timber cruising
• Sawmill log procurement
• Timber Harvest Plan (THP) preparation
• Logging administration
• Harvest unit layout
• Wildlife and botany work
• GIS
• Road layout
• Reforestation

Qualifications

• Must be continuing education in Fall 2027, pursuing a degree in forestry, natural resources, or significantly related field
• Interns must be able to cross‑country hike and negotiate steep, brushy terrain
• Interns must have a valid driver’s license and ability to navigate a 4‑wheel drive vehicle along off‑highway roads

Base Locations:

California: Anderson, Burney, Camino, Chico, Sonora, Weaverville
Oregon: Eugene
Washington: Burlington

Employment Period:

MAY/JUNE through AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2027 (flexible start & end dates)

Compensation includes competitive hourly wage and housing allowance for qualifying individuals.

Celebrate our 300th million seedling planted with us!

Sierra Pacific is an (EOE) Equal Opportunity Employer, including those with a disability and veterans.

About Our Company

Sierra Pacific Industries is a fourth‑generation family‑owned company based in Northern California that started in 1949 and has grown to be one of the largest lumber and millwork producers in the U.S., employing around 6,500 crew members. Sierra Pacific continues to be a company where its employees are proud to work at state‑of‑the‑art facilities and others strive to become part of the team.

We own and sustainably manage more than 2.4 million acres of timberland in California, Oregon, and Washington. Our forests are sustainably managed under a 100‑year plan by Registered Professional Foresters, Wildlife Biologists, Botanists, and other professionals. We are growing forests for our future, planting over 6 million new trees every year. In Spring 2024, we planted our 300 millionth seedling on our timberlands. This milestone was decades in the making, reflecting our commitment to sustainable forest management and ensuring we have forests not just for today, but for generations to come.

Sierra Pacific effectively uses nearly 100% of every piece of wood we bring to our facilities. In fact, any small amount that isn’t turned into hand‑crafted doors and windows, millwork, lumber, or landscaping material is actually converted into electricity in our eight biomass‑fueled power plants.

We are proud that all Sierra Pacific facilities follow our drug‑free and tobacco‑free policies. As part of our safety in the workplace policy, an offer of employment is subject to a negative drug screen result. We use E‑verify to verify the social security number and work authorization of all newly hired employees. Sierra Pacific is an (EOE) Equal Opportunity Employer, including those with a disability and veterans.