Career Advice on How to Become a Bee Keeper What could possibly be more fun than hanging out with swarms (quite literally) of tiny insects that, if angered, can sting you?  Beekeepers don’t just tend bees for kicks or fun.  (Well, actually a few do such as “hobby beekeepers,” but we’re not going to talk about them, ever.)  A beekeeper works with bees in order to get his or her hands on their sweet, sweet honey, beeswax, royal jelly and other assorted bee goodness.

Career Facts:

It takes a special person and a special mindset to put on a de facto suit of armor to go to work.  Once beekeepers put on their protective gear, some bee keepers can earn money by selling the honey and other products that their little bee slaves produce.  Others force their bees to work as pollination slaves, pollinating crops around the country for their masters without so much as even a thank you.

Career Opportunities and Job Outlook-Unknown:

Issues such as colony collapse, where bees have begun dying off in large numbers for reasons that are still debated, has put the future of bees and thus the bee keeper in question.  One fact is certain, however, bees are responsible for pollinating a great deal of the produce that humans eat each and every day.

A Day in The Life:

Ok, so you are career planning to be a bee keeper. What will your average day look like?  Most bee keepers spend their days tending to their bee colonies.  Increasingly, that has meant checking for colony collapse and worrying about colony collapse.

Average Salary:

Most bee keepers are small farmers who are just looking to make a modest living tending their bees.  The average bee keeper can expect to make about $20,000 if employed full time as a bee keeper.  What a deal for risking being stung by an angry swarm of bees, huh?

$20k

Career Training and Qualifications:

Those looking to work as bee keepers should not only expect some on the job training but demand it.  After all who wants to pickup bee keeping skills “on the fly”?