Re: What kind of Training is required, and how much education is needed?

I’m assuming that you are concerned about training and education for a 
career as a zoologist.

Normally, you will be looking at a bachelor’s degree in science, most 
likely biology, possibly even in zoology (depending on the college or 
university you attend). You would then get a master’s degree and a PhD In 
some cases, you might go directly for the PhD Both master’s degrees and 
PhD degrees are available in zoology but you may get a master’s in 
biology with a specialty in zoology.

At some point you will probably want to specialized, depending on what area 
of zoology you would like to work in. Possibilities are marine biology (or 
marine zoology), vertebrate zoology (the study of animals with backbones), 
invertebrate zoology (the study of animals without backbones), ecology (the 
study of the relationships between organisms and their  environment), 
ethology (the study of the behavior of animals), paleontology (the study of 
fossils).

If you want to teach in college (that is, as opposed to doing research in a 
university and teaching as part of the requirement) you should consider 
community college teaching. The minimum requirement, in most cases, is a 
master’s degree in the teaching discipline (not a degree in education).

In any case, you must realize that to be a good zoologist you must also, 
depending on the area in which you specialize, be a good botanist, 
mathematician, geologist, oceanographer, chemist, and so on. So, don’t 
neglect these areas in your education.