Is FRI, Dehradun a good institute for pursuing an MSc in forestry?

Forest Research Institute (FRI) is an institute concerned with the forestry sector in India. The M.sc, Ph.D., PGD, and other short term courses are designed to impart practical knowledge to the students of this institution in the Department of Forestry.

In terms of the M.Sc department, a few features need to be highlighted:

Academic Teaching

• The classes are conducted by profound scientists of FRI and other affiliated institutes such as WII, IIRS, FSI, Retd. IFS Officers, and Senior IFS Officers.
• Surprise visits of renowned lecturers from other institutes can also be observed.

Infrastructure

The campus itself is well-equipped and designed appropriately to provide the students with an adequate practical experience in terms of –

• A Well-classified and systematically arranged central nursery of Forest species.
• The Institute has an enormous Reserved Forest of Tropical & Subtropical vegetation, thus it presents more opportunity to study them and increase the previous knowledge.
• The division of the departments in a strategic way enlarges one’s expertise wavelength through first-hand observation and examination of the varied species.

Library

The library of FRI is widely known as the 2nd largest library on Forestry and allied subjects. It is updated frequently and well-maintained.

If your aim is Ph.D. then you would not face many problems because the opportunities for doing a research paper in this line of work are infinite. Throughout the course you will get sufficient time for preparation of Government exams, if you want to. The curriculum is lenient.

There a lot of drawbacks as well which should be taken into consideration –

• This institute is not apt for a master’s degree. If you intend to pursue graduation or some other course in FSI then you are making the right decision. Although the same cannot be said for the master students.
• The number of companies visiting the campus for recruitment is quite less. So, the students have to rely on their own contacts and social skills to establish connection with their choice of companies and organizations like NGOs in the forestry sector, etc. to land up a permanent job.
• The student is left with two gateways - either aim for government jobs or higher studies. These are the two options left with the students after completing M.sc in Forestry from this institute because getting a job is highly unlikely.

So, you should not opt for FSI if you are considering getting enrolled in this institute. You can try to look at other better colleges or institutes with good placement rates and more widened scope.