FNR Field Report: Zane Smoldt

Students from Purdue Forestry and Natural Resources took their classroom knowledge to the field for summer internships and paid positions across the country, gaining valuable experience, hands-on training and career guidance. The FNR Field Reports series will offer updates from those individuals as summer positions draw to a close.

Zane Smoldt, a junior forestry major with a concentration in forest management, worked as a forestry intern on the Purdue Forestry and Natural Resources properties this summer.

Smoldt assisted the FNR foresters and property managers with property management, ranging from invasive species control to timber stand improvement (TSI), harvesting timber, forest inventory, writing timber sale contracts, and operating heavy equipment like tractors, skid steers, and a log skidder.

The West Lafayette native said the summer position, which he discovered at the FNR Career Fair in February, taught him many skills.

“I learned many things this summer, including how to apply silvicultural practices to timber stands, how to identify and control invasive plant species, the operation and maintenance of equipment like chainsaws and heavy machinery, how to safely and effectively cut down trees in many scenarios, as well as how to evaluate timber stands for characteristics like age, species composition, economic value, and overall health,” said Smoldt, who also is minoring in wood products and manufacturing technology. “This position made me very aware of the wide range of responsibilities and activities that property managers as well as district and state foresters deal with in their profession. I would say that it has helped me to gain an understanding of what positions will be available to me after college as well as what these positions will entail.”

In addition to the many skills Smoldt learned, he also was faced with the demands of the job and its hazards.

“One of the challenging parts about this internship was the responsibility put on us as interns,” Smoldt shared. “We were required to operate big machines and you had to make sure you were doing so very safely. Additionally, you had to make sound judgements when carrying out management objectives as you can’t put a tree back once its cut.”

Smoldt said some there were also many perks of the position.

“My favorite parts of this job included being outside every day, getting to see a wide variety of properties all over the state that each needed a different management approach, learning how to operate a chainsaw and being able to cut down trees, and getting to drive big machines like the log skidder,” Smoldt said. “Another thing that stands out to me is the incredible people I got to work with. All of the FNR foresters really love what they do and they made sure to teach and help us understand many of the principles of forestry in this internship. I feel that I gained invaluable experience with property management this summer.”

Getting hands-on experience made classroom work come to life for Smoldt.

“I was able to apply many aspects of my FNR studies in this internship,” Smoldt explained. “For example, I was able to apply silvicultural knowledge that I gained at Summer Practicum as well as the ability to measure and record forest inventory data and statistics gained through taking FNR 353, Forest Measurements. Being able to take what I’ve been learning in the classroom and apply it to a physical environment was something that I really appreciated. Additionally, I had a lot of fun being able to operate chainsaws and the log skidder, tools that I don’t have regular access to now, but will more than likely have in my future career.”

Smoldt has gained other hands-on career experience during his undergraduate career, working with Niches Land Trust on some of their prescribed burnings.

As he looks to the future, Smoldt said he plans on becoming involved with the Society of American Foresters as well as the Purdue Student Society of Arboriculture this year. He already is an active staff member of Young Life, a local ministry organization that works with local high schools and middle schools in the Greater Lafayette area.

As for his career plans, Smoldt says he hopes to work out West in wildland firefighting right after college and eventually thinks he will transition to a role like a consulting forester or state forester when he is ready to be done working in the fire sector.