2022 Volume 104 Issue 5 Pages 262-273
The purpose of this study is to examine the content of forest science required in university education based on an analysis of the content of the examination for the professional engineer (forest disciplines), a highly specialized qualification. The target of the analysis was the contents of the professional engineer examinations (three subjects: specialized subject, required subject, and optional subject). The contents of the examinations were organized and classified by referring to the table of contents of the book “Essentials of Forest and Forestry Practice” and the presentation sections of the Japanese Society of Forest Science. As a result, the contents of the special subjects and required subjects were based on almost all the 26 chapters in the table of contents of the book and almost all the presentation sections of the society except for the education section. Particularly, some fields such as erosion control, forest engineering, and forest policy were more important than others because they tended to appear more frequently each year. There are three elective subjects: forest civil engineering, forest environment, and forestry and forest products. Many of the questions were related to erosion control and forest engineering, ecology and forest policy, and non-wood forest products and silviculture. Therefore, the content of forest science required for university education by the qualification examination for professional engineer (forest disciplines) is broad, including the field of forest products science. It is necessary to review the minimum commonality and academic system of forest science in university education.
