Zoo Careers

A career working in a zoo or safari park requires commitment and hard work and it is worth considering working as a volunteer or pursuing an internship first, as both of these opportunities will provide you with valuable practical experience.

With over a hundred million people visiting zoos every year, workers have an excellent opportunity to educate large numbers of people about the need for the conservation of wildlife and the importance of respecting animals. This responsibility assures a varied, interesting and rewarding career.

Having some experience in work such as wildlife rehabilitation is very useful, particularly for any of the hands-on zoo or safari park careers - where having prior experience will greatly improve your employment prospects.

Zoo keepers: are responsible for the day-to-day care and welfare of animals kept in zoos and safari parks. Their primary role is to ensure that these animals are kept physically and psychologically healthy. As there are approximately only 1,500 people employed in this type of work, entry into this career is highly competitive.

Wildlife Ranger: Some aspects of the Wildlife Ranger's role are similar to that of a Zoo keeper, but the work is based in a safari park instead of in a zoo.

Zoologist: Zoologists are involved in the scientific study of animals including their anatomy, physiology, classification, distribution, behaviour and ecology.

Habitat designer/zoo horticulturist: This is a fast growing career as increasingly zoos strive to improve the environment for the animals in their care.

Curators: In larger zoos, there may be a variety of curator career roles including zoo curators, curator of exhibits, curator of horticulture and curator of education.

Veterinary team: Is responsible for the health of all the animals and for maintaining health records, treating disease, immunisation and dealing with an emergencies that arise.

Registrar: Is in charge of maintaining thorough records about an animal collection. Details such as births, deaths, animal transfer/loan dates, data on offspring from breeding programmes etc, all needs to be carefully recorded.

Director of Research: Is in charge of overseeing all the research projects and works as a liaison between the organisation and the academic community.

Director of Conservation: This role includes the overseeing of all of the organisation's conservation activities, including field projects.