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Educational Focus Area

Natural Resources

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Natural Resources EFA icon logos, a tree, flame, water drop and turnip

Grow your skills at Clackamas Community College

If you enjoy working with your hands, collecting data and analyzing results -or want to ensure a healthy environment for everyone - a natural resources program may be what you're looking for.

Step out of the classroom and into the great outdoors. Whether it's using drones to plot land maps, fighting fires, growing plants, creating beautiful landscapes, or ensuring the community has clean water, our natural resources programs are hands on and designed to give you real-world experience in the field.

Natural Resources Programs

Associate of Science (AS) and Associate of Applied Science (AAS) Degrees - Two Years to Complete

  1. Students taking pink flowering plants from start containers and planting them in the ground at the Oregon City campus.
    Horticulture Transfer
  2. Inside a horticulture greenhouse on the Oregon City campus with pink flowers in the foreground and red and orange flowers in the background.
    Horticulture
  3. Two students are landscaping a yard.
    Landscape Management
  4. Person working in a tree
    Landscape Management, Arboriculture Option
  5. Chemistry lab: Students in white lab coats and protective eyewear can be seen through beakers of clear liquid in the foreground.
    Water and Environmental Technology

Certificate Programs - One Year to Complete

  1. Two people are using a GIS mapping tool in a wooded outdoor setting.
    Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Technology Certificate
  2. Students doing water purity testing in the lab with beakers full of water.
    High Purity Water Certificate
  3. A line of horticulture students posing behind rows of young inground plants at the Oregon City campus.
    Horticulture Certificate
  4. Two students are landscaping a yard.
    Landscape Practices Certificate
  5. Students use gardening tools amid rows of vegetables in CCC's organic farm.
    Organic Farming Certificate
  6. Students doing water purity testing in the lab with beakers full of water.
    Water and Environmental Technology Certificate
  7. Firefighter walking down a road next to burning forest.
    Wildland Fire Science Certificate

Career Pathway Certificates of Completion Programs - Less Than One Year to Complete

  1. Irrigation technician installing a watering system
    Irrigation Technician Career Pathway
  2. Student tending to a hanging plant with pink flowers in a greenhouse at the Oregon City campus.
    Plant Health Management Career Pathway
  3. Firefighter standing in a smoky pine forest with their axe and backpack full of gear.
    Wildland Firefighter 1 Career Pathway
  4. A group of firefighters clearing out a fireline across an old growth forest.
    Wildland Fire Forestry Career Pathway
  5. Person with an axe in a forest
    Wilderness Survival & Leadership Career Pathway

Transfer to a four-year university

Common Natural Resources Transfer Majors

  • Horticulture

Learn more about transfer degrees

Get Started in Natural Resources

You don't have to have your career goals figured out yet. Start with foundations like the Natural Resources Exploration class and see where a Clackamas Community College education in natural resources can take you. 

Step 01

Apply and Get Started at CCC

It only takes a few steps to apply to CCC, apply for financial aid and get started on your path to academic success.

Get started now

Step 02

Contact One the Natural Resource Advisor Before Registering for Courses

Natural Resources advisor:

Kara Leonard
kleonard@clackamas.edu

Step 03

Begin with courses that will help you reach your academic and career goals

Whether you have a career in mind or are just starting to explore your interest in natural resources, you can save time and money by starting with courses that can take you anywhere. Create a strong foundation for any horticulture, water and environmental technology or wildland fire/forestry program or a transfer degree at Clackamas Community College by starting with the courses below.

Beginning CoursesTerms Typically Offered InCredits
FYE-101 First Year Experience Level IFall, winter, spring 2
EFA-101N Introduction to Natural ResourcesNot every term1
HOR-111 Horticulture Practicum/FallFall2
FRP-130 Introduction to Wildland Firefighting (S-130/S-190/ICS-100/IS-700/L-180) OR
FRP-101 Basic Forest Management and FRP-102 Basic Forest Management Lab		Fall, spring (FRP-130), Fall (FRP-101/102)2-4
WET-110 Wastewater Operations I OR
WET-111 Waterworks Operations I		Fall (WET-110), fall (WET-111)3

View the course catalog for more information about Natural Resources courses. View the schedule for times and locations of upcoming courses.

Contact us

Contact the Natural Resources advisor to learn more about this educational focus area:

Kara Leonard

    Important information

    • Water and Environmental Technology students who pass the Associate of Board Certification (ABC) upon completion of the program are certified to operate in 39 states.
    • Wildland Fire courses lead to nationally recognized certifications through the the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG).

    Pay for college

    You may be eligible for financial support.

    Related activities

    • Horticulture students can participate in the Horticulture Club and the annual National Collegiate Landscape Competition. They can also earn several industry recognized certifications.

    Academic support

    • CCC Library offers free print and online access to many textbooks and industry publications, 24/7 live chat help, 1:1 in-person and Zoom research appointments, and more.

    Explore more Educational Focus Areas

    Ready to Get Started?