Qualifications
Remember, there is no such thing as a professional herpetologist, per se, just working biologists who specialize in amphibians and reptiles. As such, you're going to need to make sure you build yourself a solid pair of educational stilts if you want to walk at the same level of the many specialized giants in your field. That means starting in high school and bending academia to your indomitable will all the way through post-grad and beyond.
So, let's assume you want to be the greatest herpetologist who ever lived (and really, who doesn't?). First, decide what that means to you. Museum curator? Amusement park snake handler? Conservationist? Do you want to work at the zoo, as a vet, or as a field researcher?
Since you can't get a degree in herpetology, you're going to need to think about what sort of qualifications are going to prepare you for the fulfilling, sustainable career that you're going to enjoy. Don't expect anyone else to tell you what that is, because all you're getting from Mom on this one is, "Do you have to touch the snakes?"
No matter what you want to do, you should start with a bachelor's degree, and then take as many classes in life science and math as you can along the way. We're talking biology of the macro and micro variety, all the chemistries, the highest levels of calculus you can wrap your noodle around, and basically anything you can find that deals with cells, creatures, and ecology. Mix it all together, walk out four years later with a BS in biology, and move on to grad school.
Obtaining a master's or PhD is going to open many a door on your path to becoming an almighty frog genius, so selecting the right program is a big deal. It's time to do a little research here and ask yourself some questions:
- Which schools have the strongest herpetology research departments?
- Which schools employ the herpetologists that you've read about in all of the scientific journals that you're subscribed to?
- Which schools offer good programs in the specific area you're likely to focus in?
Once you're done and have your doctorate framed and ready to collect dust on the empty wall behind your computer, start looking for work. Congratulations, you're officially ready to have professional-grade opinions on newts.