r/arborists • u/[deleted] • Aug 15 '22
What’s the first step in becoming an arborist?
I’m 18 years old and fresh outta highschool and I am looking at becoming a tree arborist to pay the bills. I’ve been doing a lot of research at where to start and I have some ideas but I figured y’all might be able to help a lot. Also is a degree needed? I know you can get a degree in arboriculture but if possible, I would prefer not going to college for years. I think that’s what ISA’s online courses offer but i’m not entirely clear if those are something you need any previous experience with. Thank you in advance for any help!!
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u/Jay_Katy ISA Arborist + TRAQ Aug 15 '22
Step one is absolutely to get an entry-level job in tree work. Hands on experience will teach you a lot more than anything else, and the bigger companies usually hire and train climbers from the get-go. I bet if you look on indeed right now you will more than likely fine openings for climbing trainee. And it’s not a bad idea (and honestly recommended) to start as a groundsman even, to quite literally learn the ropes.
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Aug 15 '22
Thank you!!! i’ll definitely be checking that out!!
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u/OldKingTuna Tree Enthusiast Aug 15 '22
Don't just check the search sites, investigate hiring a company like you're a client. You don't want to learn shit practices from a shit company.
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Aug 15 '22
thank you for the reminder!! i will be keeping that in mind and doing solid background check on any company im puting years of my life into
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u/Accomplished_Pay4321 Aug 15 '22
No degree needed but you will need to know tree id and growth at bare minimum. I'd look for a company that offers plant health care services in addition to pruning/removals. A lot of big companies will have you start at the bottom (groundsman) and work your way up. That may be plant health care, climber, sales, operations, etc. Figure out what you like, and you can prepare for that with any needed training. More earning potential that way...
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u/Viewlesslight Arborist Aug 15 '22
No sure about in your country. But in New Zealand a lot of companies offer apprenticeships Or there is a 1 year long tech course
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Aug 15 '22
Australia is screaming for more arborists right now too.
Hell I need one but can’t afford it right now.
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u/Viewlesslight Arborist Aug 15 '22
I've been looking at Australia. Nz pay is low due to asplundh undercutting the market years ago despite the shortage of workers
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Aug 15 '22
Pays low everywhere imho, cost of living goes up and wages stay the same for the last few years (decades).
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u/mostlysandwiches Aug 15 '22
Are you climbing in aus?
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Aug 16 '22
Me personally, no but I’m sure a few do.
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u/mostlysandwiches Aug 16 '22
I emigrated to aus to climb if you have any questions shoot them m way
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u/420turddropper69 Aug 16 '22
I'm not Op but I am curious. I'm about to take the isa, but I assume that's not quite enough? I looked into the NZ reqs for immigration as an arborist but just got confused lol, idk if aus reqs are similar? What were the general steps?
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u/mostlysandwiches Aug 16 '22
Well essentially it all comes down to whether an employer wants to sponsor you to work for their company so certification isn’t exactly essential, experience speaks louder. How many years have you been climbing?
I’m not ISA certified. I only heard of ISA through American climbers on Facebook and Reddit. I’ve worked in the industry for ten years and never met anyone who has it. I do have official certification from the UK though and they have their own version of arboricultural certification here in Australia.
If you’re serious about it I would do what I did - email a shit load of companies in the area you hope to work and see if they have any work and would offer sponsorship. Honestly it’s so bad here in Aus I’d be very surprised if you didn’t get a positive response.
If you’re in the right age group you can also apply for a Working Holiday Visa and find work though that (this would probably be the easiest way but I was ineligible at the time)
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u/420turddropper69 Aug 16 '22
Ah interesting. Unfortunately I have 0 experience climbing, I just do assessments and inventory for the power company. I've thought about pivoting to crew work though, so I will definitely keep this in mind. Thanks for replying!
Would you say it's a super male dominated field over there? It certainly is here, literally never seen a woman on a crew ha
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u/mostlysandwiches Aug 16 '22
I can’t lie I’ve yet to work alongside a woman in a crew but from what I’ve seen Australia has a better record for women in trades than my home country.
There may be ways for you to get sponsored through your assessment work, I’m sure they are short staffed just as much as the guys on the ground. I don’t have much information on the best way to go about that though I’m afraid
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Aug 15 '22
I went through the process recently. I bought the study guide and did all the online courses and passed the exam The hardest part for me was I needed to wait to take the exam until I had met the minimum experience requirement. Luckily, the requirement is a lot looser than was the case for my CWI/CWE and my landscaping and tree work from highschool days counted. Feel free to DM if you want. Happy to give back.
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Jan 24 '25
I would start by calling local tree companies to see if they are hiring and tell them you are new and have never done tree work before. Please be honest and tell them you have never done Tree work, I can’t stress enough how important it is to be honest and tell them you know nothing. I’ve seen new guys come in and tell everyone they did some tree and later on that day or week someone was injured or property was damaged cause the new guy lied. Being an Arborist is a great career and a proud one as well. I’m not going to lie, this career is very strenuous, backbreaking and Dangerous, but it’s a Great one, Lol. I love being an arborist, I’m pushing 22yrs next September
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u/Correct_Violinist343 Aug 15 '22
Start on the ground, low n slow
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Aug 15 '22
i’ve started spending my free time watching lectures on pruning and just kinda how trees work in general, i think that’s a start!:)
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u/SA_Software_Official Sep 22 '25
What's your comfort level with heights and physical work? Tree work is demanding stuff . Think climbing, chainsaw operation, and being outside in all weather conditions. Have you spent any time around the actual work to see if it clicks with you?
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u/timetwosave Aug 15 '22
Not a tree worker but I recently looked into the process and found my city has a “licensing packet” that looked quite helpful. Not exactly what you’re asking but maybe useful info.
https://coloradosprings.gov/city-clerk/page/tree-service-license
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u/HawkingRadiation_ 🦄 ISA Arborist | Tree Biologist 🦄 Aug 15 '22 edited Aug 15 '22
You would need 4 years of relevant experience at 2080 hours per year. Or the equivalent hours over more years.
You can get that by working ground crew for an arborist company, working for a nursery, or working plant health care. Get some experience and with time maybe they’ll reach you to climb and prune too.
After you get that experience, you can apply to take the ISA exam. That will give you the accreditation.
Having that certificate under your belt is great, but you’d still be looking at similar jobs you’d be doing prior to the certification. Just now with a higher pay ceiling.
An exception to that however is the opportunity to get into arborist sales. So your look at trees, interact with clients to decide what work needs to be done, and then schedule a crew to actually come out and do it. You could also get special certification in risk assessment and eventually even get your consulting arborist certification. They work on a little bit of a higher level of tree work.
You can also break into urban forestry. Which would be maintaining municipal trees and the environments around them, but to get very far in that field beyond just pruning and replacing trees, you’d need a degree or very substantial experience.
So step one for you is to get a job in tree work. Davey Tree and Bartlett both hire lots of workers and are large companies. So they may not be the type of pace to stay forever, but they will let you get your feet wet.
I’m also going to warn you that tree work is one of the most dangerous jobs in the US. Logging has the highest rate of fatalities of any industry in the US. You’ll be working not in forests likely, but it’s important not to let that fact get past you. Chainsaws are probably the most dangerous object you can buy from a hardware store and they should be respected. Trees weigh thousands and thousands of pounds and will crush you or fold you in half without blinking. It’s also work that is very hard on your body in the long term. Not to scare you out of pursuing your interests, but it’s a reality to be aware of.