Founded 43 years ago, the School of Forest Engineering directs all of its efforts to contribute to the country’s development, through the training of human resources in research and outreach projects in the field of forest resources.
It maintains technological leadership, academic excellence and strict adherence to ethical, humanistic and environmental standards from the perspective of a high-quality public university which is competitive at the national and international levels.
In this context, the School of Forest Engineering plays a leading role in the search for a harmonious relationship between society and natural resources, to achieve a better quality of life and the preservation of Costa Rica's natural resources.
The School of Forest Engineering offers:
- Licentiate’s Degree in Forest Engineering with an emphasis in Forest Management and Production: This program trains professionals in planning, design, execution, control and evaluation, providing them with the ability to work in production systems, industrial transformation and marketing of forestry products, as well as in the production and conservation of environmental services derived from forest ecosystems, respecting the principles of sustainable development.
- Licentiate’s Degree in Forest Engineering with an emphasis on Conservation and Restoration of Forest Ecosystems: This program trains professionals in planning, design, execution, monitoring, supervision, control and evaluation, providing them with the ability to work in the areas of biological diversity, protected area management, environmental impact, programs for conservation and restoration of environmental services and resources, as well as in production systems derived from forest ecosystems, respecting the principles of sustainable development.
- Master's Degree in Forest Sciences: This is an academic master's degree that provides students with the tools necessary to carry out research in all fields of forestry, with a potentially great impact in the area of tropical Mesoamerica.
Likewise, the school's professors are part of the academic bodies of the following programs:
- Master's Program in Natural Resources Management and Production Technologies. This is a professional master's degree that provides students with modern management tools and the most current production technologies related to management of natural resources.
- Doctoral Program in Natural Sciences for Development: Created by the Tecnológico de Costa Rica, the Universidad Nacional and the Universidad Estatal a Distancia, of Costa Rica, in collaboration with the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Nicaragua, in León; the Universidad Autónoma Chapingo, and the Universidad Nacional Autónoma, Mexico, with support from the National Association of Universities and Institutions of Higher Education (Anuies) and the Central American University Superior Council (CSUCA).
Misión
Contribute to the country’s integral development, the training of human resources in research, social action and outreach in the management of natural resources, through academic excellence, and ethical, scientific and technological leadership at the national and international levels.
Visión
To be an academic leader in Latin America in sustainable management of natural resources to improve the quality of life.
Values
- Social and environmental commitment: Commitment to the country’s and the region’s sustainable development.
- Honesty: Justice and moral integrity. Behaving with sincerity and consistently respecting the truth.
- Excellence: Superior quality or goodness which makes something worthy of special appreciation and esteem.
- Innovation: “To innovate is to use knowledge for the creation of processes, products and services that are new to an organization or to a company, seeking to improve existing ones, thus obtaining success in their market” Joaquín Alcázar, 2007.
Objetivos
General objective
Contribute to the development of the forestry and environmental sectors through the training of human resources and research on the management of natural resources at the national and international levels which contribute to biodiversity, such as soil, water, and forests, and their interactions with society, climate and natural disasters.
Specific objectives
- Train professionals in the field of natural resources, providing them with a solid foundation and clear awareness about the social, economic and cultural context in which forestry and environmental activities are developed, who can participate critically and actively in the country’s economic and social development.
- Systematically and continuously generate, adapt and incorporate knowledge to conserve, transform and properly use the goods and services of forest ecosystems, allowing active participation of the forestry sector in the country’s social and economic development.
- Systematically and continuously participate in processes for establishing links and transferring scientific and technological knowledge about sustainable development of the forestry and environmental sector.
