The College of Forestry (CF) was founded in 1952, named the Department of Forestry, adjusted to the Department of Forestry in 1956, established the College of Forest Resources and Environment in 1993, and changed its name to the CF in 2003. Over the past 70 years, four independent colleges and one key open laboratory of the Ministry of Education have been derived, and Maoershan Experimental Forest Farm and Harbin Experimental Forest Farm (the predecessor of "Urban Forestry Demonstration Base") were also affiliated to the original forestry department in the early years (1956-1968). The National Key Laboratory of Forest Genetics and Breeding (Northeast Forestry University) is affiliated to the CF.

The CF is the most advantageous and characteristic research college of Northeast Forestry University. It is also the college with the longest history, the strongest faculty, and the most complete platform system. For many years, CF has been based on the constructions of the forestry and ecological environment of China, insisting on the simultaneous development of “five educations” and the integration of science and education, and has long-term cultivated high-quality, innovative talents for production, application, forestry management, and scientific research in forestry and ecological environment construction. Over the past 70 years, inspired by keeping in mind the mission, hardworking and entrepreneurial spirit, CF has made great contributions to the development of forestry and education of China through the unremitting efforts of several generations.

Currently, the CF possesses four teaching organizations, including the Department of Forestry, Department of Forest Protection, Department of Forest Resources Management, and Department of Environmental Science. It has the first-level national key discipline of forestry (Doctoral program) and the first-level discipline of environmental science and engineering (Master's program). In 2017, the discipline of forestry was selected into the national "Double First-Class" construction disciplines, and it was once again selected into the list of world first-class construction disciplines in 2022.

The college actively develops academic exchanges and international cooperation with the United States, Canada, and other countries, exchanges overseas students, and establishes good academic exchanges, exchange visits of experts, and cooperative research relationships with relevant universities and research institutions of nearly 30 countries. In conjunction with the new round of "Double First-Class" construction, the college will continue to promote all-round cooperation and exchanges with internationally renowned universities such as the University of British Columbia, the University of Helsinki and other internationally renowned universities, and strive to improve the international education level of the college.

In the context of higher education shifting from extensional development to connotative development with quality improvement as the core, the college will continue to take morality education as a base, professional construction as a foundation, discipline construction as a leader, quality training as an objective, and technological innovation as a core, bravely shoulder the mission, forge ahead with determination, and constantly create new brilliance on the way of establishing a first-class domestic and internationally renowned academic college.