Botanists and their assistants must have an understanding of plant structure, function, and classification as well as how plants are impacted by humans and how humans can use plants and plant products. Entry-level botanists must have earned at least a bachelor’s degree. Higher-level botany professionals generally require a higher degree, such as a master’s degree or Ph.D. Educational institutions higher botanists as teachers or researchers and their assistants. Botanists may specialize in plant anatomy, biochemistry, biophysics, cytology, ecology, genetics, molecular biology, morphology, paleobotany, plant physiology, systematic, systems ecology, or taxonomy. They may also work in fields such as agronomy, biotechnology, plant breeding, economic botany, food science and technology, forestry, horticulture, natural resource management, and plant pathology. Botanists may also specialize in the type of organism they study. Specifically, this badge demonstrates the earner's ability to explain the classification systems used to organize and identify plants, describe bacteria in terms of forms, differences from eukaryotes, nutrition, bacterial uses to humans, bacteria harmful to humans, and differentiate between major bacterial groups, and describe the Kingdom Protista in terms of similarities and differences of members, form and function of members, classification, and economical importance , discuss the Plant Kingdom and bryophytes in terms of how members are different from each other and distinguishing structures, functions, processes, and uses of bryophytes.
