 Sætren studied at "Lillehammer Latin- og Realskole", at "Qvams skole" in Christiania and at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich from 1862 to 1865.In 1866 he started working as a draftsman for Kanalvæsenet, the body for exploitation of Norwegian water resources, and held various positions at Kanalvæsenet over a period of 41 years.He ended his career as manager for the Bandak-Norsjø Canal from 1891 to 1907.